Euro-Mediterranean Information System on know-how in the Water sector

Water resources: Scarcity prospective, International debate and national specificities

2007-12-03T00:00:00Z

The future of water resources and the current - or latent - conflicts around the division of that essential resource for human life represent one of the major issues of the coming decades, if not indeed the next few years. Futuribles (FUT 336, December 2007), which intends to return to this question shortly, is this month publishing an article by Sébastien Treyer that provides many elements for a foresight analysis with regard to the increasing scarcity of water resources., The author presents the development of the international debate on the future scarcity of water in historical perspective and studies the various projections, forecasts and foresight scenarios that are, or have been, at issue. There have been four main phases to this debate: a first period centred on the notion of national water stress, based on demographic profiles; a second phase relating to the complexity of the water management system and its future vulnerability; a third stage dealing with the adaptive capacity of the populations exposed to possible water scarcity and, lastly, a fourth phase approaching the question from a global standpoint, in terms of the trade in foodstuffs., Sébastien Treyer ends this particular analysis by focussing on the example of Tunisia to present a national planning process for water resource management. He concludes by highlighting the crucial presence of questions of a political nature, domestic political considerations (resource allocation, development paths, purification) having precedence here even over international ones.

Call for papers for the 4th International Conference on Water and Wastewater Pumping Stations

2007-12-03T00:00:00Z

Introduction

Since this series of conferences began, the demands upon the designers, consultants, contractors and users of pumping stations have both increased and widened. The safe and effective operation of a pumping station remains the primary requirement but demands for energy reduction are growing in importance with every year that passes. Not only are designers responsible for new stations required to deliver the specified performance whilst minimising capital costs but reducing operating costs are now increasingly important.

Further afield in the Middle East, pumping station design and operation is driven by yet another set of demands, where for instance the minimisation of H2S release, and the clearance of vast quantities of sand entering the sump, may require a different approach to familiar problems.

To meet this challenge, an integrated approach to pumping station design is required - the pooling of knowledge which contributors brought to the first conference proved an ideal forum for the sharing of latest ideas, products and techniques. This technical conference, which brings together not only specialists with a range of expertise but also the best methods and approaches to pumping station design and maintenance, is an ideal way to learn of the latest developments.

This conference will be held in Cranfield (UK) in 17-19 June 2008.

Scope
Papers are invited that demonstrate the interaction of some or all of the following aspect

    * Capital programme evaluation
    * Project definition delivery
    * Business case drivers (CAPEX and OPEX)
    * Station layout and plant operations
    * Integrated system design
    * Control optimisation
    * Maintaining service during reconstruction

Seminar / Workshop Session

In addition to the conference this year, BHR Group is pleased to offer a seminar/workshop session on the 19th of June. This will provide delegates with the opportunity to discuss relevant problems, design concepts etc., with a team of technical experts and to get some hands-on experience utilising scaled physical models in the laboratory at BHR Group.

Places are limited so delegates are strongly advised to register their interest with the Organisers at the earliest opportunity.

Who Should Attend
All those whose jobs involve them in:

    * Government agencies
    * Water, power and process companies
    * Consultants
    * Contractors
    * Plant suppliers
    * International development agencies
    * Research and development agencies

Deadline for abstracts: December 24, 2007.

New OpenWater Wiki

2007-12-03T00:00:00Z

This is to invite all, and particularly those interested in analytical methods related to water quality sampling, to visit the new OpenWater Wiki, launched at the 8th Conference of the United Nations Spatial Data Infrastructure Working Group in Bangkok. The Wiki is at http://www.ungiwg.org/openwater/ and is designed to share methodological information, tips and tricks on the analysis of water quality samples. We hope that users of the OpenWater Wiki will see this as a valuable forum to post information and questions relating to existing, new and developing methods for the analysis of water quality samples.

Many people working in water quality monitoring are familiar with unpublished methods manuals maintained by individual laboratories. These manuals are usually an invaluable resource to new members of the lab as they often have specific tips about certain analytical methods, instrumentation, reagent preparation and sourcing, amongst other materials, that are seldom included in published methods descriptions.

Students in this field often find themselves pouring over such manuals trying to piece together very basic analytical protocol details in order to ensure that their samples are properly analysed and their results are meaningful. OpenWater Wiki, seeks to fill this gap, by providing a venue in which users from around the world can post their tips and tricks, as well as questions about analytical methods.

In order to be a useful resource, the OpenWater Wiki needs the participation of individuals actively involved in the analysis of water quality samples. We have populated the site with basic methods descriptions and references for standard water quality parameters but hope this is just a starting point and that the site expands to become an active discussion forum about existing and new analytical methods.

Please visit the moderated OpenWater Wiki http://www.ungiwg.org/openwater/, to register as a user, and begin to use it as a resource for yourself and colleagues involved in the analysis of water quality. Feel free to refer other colleagues and students to this site. The more participation and feedback that we get in the early stages of the OpenWater Wiki, the more likely it will be that this site will become a success and a useful resource for water quality practitioners worldwide.

We would also be very happy to receive any comments you have about the site structure, or suggestions for further populating the site or encouraging users to participate. GEMS/Water hopes to facilitate the transfer of information regarding analytical methods in water quality, but the ultimate success of the OpenWater Wiki depends on its users and the more input we receive from potential users, the better we can make this site.

What does GEMS/Water do?
Since its establishment in 1978, UNEP’s Global Environmental Monitoring System (GEMS) Water Programme has become the primary source for global environmental water quality data. It is a multi-faceted water science centre oriented towards knowledge development on inland quality issues throughout the world. Major activities include monitoring, assessment and capacity building.

The twin goals of the programme are to improve water quality monitoring and assessment capabilities in participating countries, and to determine the status and trends of regional and global water quality. These goals are implemented through the GEMS/Water data bank, at www.gemstat.org, including water quality data and information from more than 2,800 stations in 100 countries, with over four million entries for lakes, reservoirs, rivers and groundwater systems. By compiling a global database, GEMS/Water adds value to country-level data by contributing to global and regional water quality assessments.

Through its Quality Management System (QMS), UNEP’s GEMS/Water Programme improves global water quality data by ensuring the comparability and validity of analyses performed by laboratories worldwide, and by encouraging and supporting data integrity at all levels.

The programme also carries out evaluations on a range of water quality issues and methodologies. GEMS/Water data have been used by other organizations, including the UN system and universities around the world.

Raed Abu Saud: New Minister of Water and Irrigation in Jordan

2007-12-03T00:00:00Z

Raed Abu Saud was nominated New Minister of Water and Irrigation in Jordan in the new 27-member government headed by Nader Dahabi.

The New Water Minister in Jordan "Raed Abu Saud" to visit Syria on Tuesday

2007-12-03T00:00:00Z

Jordanian Minister of Water and Irrigation Raed Abu Saud will visit Syria on Tuesday at the head of an official delegation in response to an invitation by Syrian Irrigation Minister Nader Al Buni. The visit was scheduled to take place last Tuesday but was postponed due to the formation of a new government in Jordan. An official source at the water ministry said the visit, which will last until Thursday, is designed to complete bilateral talks on water issues, discuss means to protect their water rights in water basins and store water in Al Wihda Dam. The Wihda Dam is to supply Jordan with 80 million cubic meters of water per year — 50 million cubic meters for drinking water and 30 million cubic meters for irrigating in the Jordan Valley. Jordan and Syria held talks early last month and agreed to give priority to storing rain water in al Wihda dam during the current winter season.

Call for papers - NORMAN workshop "Integrated strategies for riskassessment of emerging substances"

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

The 4th thematic NORMAN workshop "Integrated chemical and bio-monitoring strategies for risk assessment of emerging substances" will be organised by Cemagref - Agricultural and Environmental Engineering Research Institute - and it will take place in Lyon, France on 17-18 March 2007.

The workshop will explore chemical and biological effects-driven strategies for risk assessment of emerging pollutants and the potential for their integration under legislative frameworks.

The workshop Deadline for abstracts is 1st February 2008.

Call for papers for the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) 2008 Annual Conference, London, August

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

To say that water is crucial to life is axiomatic. However, in spite of this significance, water has, with a few notable exceptions, been largely neglected by human geographers. It pervades our daily life and manifests itself in a variety of spaces and forms, and is used in a multitude of ways, but water’s mattering is not limited to its status as a crucial resource. It affects and is affected by people, shaping spaces, defining ecologies and provoking emotions: the excitement and fear caused by floods, the relaxing sound of a garden water feature, the desirability of a waterfront office location, and the irritation of a dripping tap. Water is instrumental in forming understandings of identity, space and place (Strang, 2004) and becomes imbued with different meanings in different social and cultural scenarios. Water connects: it flows across divides between urban and rural, nature and culture, public and private, self and other, and through concepts of modernity (see, for example, Gandy, 2002 & 2004; Swyngedouw, 2004; Kaika, 2005: Braun, 2005). Water’s fluid form links different places, and offers a connection between different issues, scales and methodological approaches. It may also be perceived as a barrier between different places and between ‘ways of embodied being’
(Jones, 2000); its ‘alien nature’ creates challenges, both for management and governance, and for developing understandings of the life forms it contains.

This session will draw together emerging research on water to examine the affective and material geographies of water and investigate the particular knowledges and spaces associated with it. In so doing, the session will offer a new direction to the ‘geographies of water’ as more than a resource. We welcome contributions from first and third world, urban and rural contexts, from human and physical geographers, other disciplines and from practitioners beyond the academy. Possible topics for papers could
include:

•       The role of water in shaping understandings of space, place and identity
•       Water and the body
•       The fluidity of water
•       Understandings, subjectivities and materialities of aquatic life
•       Water as an agent/actant
•       Affective waterscapes
•       Gendered spaces of water
•       The absence of water: abstraction, drought and access in (re) defining spaces

Early enquiries and expressions of interest would be welcome. Titles and abstracts should be sent to either Chris Bear (c.bear@hull.ac.uk) or Jacob Bull (jacob.a.bull@ex.ac.uk) by 14th January 2007.

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

Decentralisation in the EC creates local funding opportunities

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

The European Commission is decentralising increasingly to its local delegation offices. Calls for proposals are now being published by the delegations rather at the Brussels level so look out for announcements on your local delegation website.

Dubai International Award for Best Practices to improve the living environment

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

Dubai Municipality and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) invite candidates to submit applications for an award of US$480,000 which will be distributed amongst 12 winners.

EU Water Facility project update

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

The EUWF (EU Water Facility) contract has finally been signed. The funding will be used to promote and improve the advocacy and participation capacities of African CSOs and strengthen ANEW (African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation). Between January and March 2008, ANEW will recruit sub regional Coordinators and a bi-lingual (French and English) Information and Communications Officer. A start-up workshop is planned for April 2008.

African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW) signs Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation (ANEW)

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

An MoU between ANEW and AMCOW was signed during the AMCOW Executive Committee meeting last month. This is a long awaited and important step for ANEW as they are now officially recognized by AMCOW and its partners as an organization which represents African Civil Society Organizations working on water and sanitation issues.

UNEP Medium Term Strategy 2010-2013

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z

Final Draft of the Medium Term Strategy for the Period of 20-2013, and Medium Term Strategy 2010-2013, Presentation by the Executive Director to the Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR). The Medium Term Strategy will be an agenda item for discussion at the GCSF.

If your organisation is engaged in the work of UNEP, please register its profile at http://www.unep.org/civil_society/Registration/index5.asp

2007-12-07T00:00:00Z