EFG at the 48th IAH Congress in Belgium

In early September, the International Association of Hydrogeologists held its 48th Congress in Brussels, organised by the Belgian National Chapter. Despite the pandemic, more than 400 professionals from all continents attended the event, in compliance with safety regulations. The organisers ensured a high level of attention to detail so that participants can focus exclusively on discussing the professional challenges facing hydrogeology. The HydroSmurf team of students played an outstanding role in this, many thanks to them!

The audience of the IAH congress

The presentations, held in 5 sessions at the same time, focused on the expected mitigation of climate change (Managed Aquifer Recharge), protection against water pollution and, last but not least, the dissemination of existing knowledge and the promotion of the hydrogeological profession, emphasising its growing role. The main objective is to ensure that the water needs of the Earth’s ecosystem are met in a sustainable way in the long term, including healthy drinking water of course. The way to do this is simple: for each activity, for each investment, all external costs that have an impact on the hydrosphere must be assessed and taken into account in the decision-making process. To achieve this, knowledge must be provided to both stakeholders (society) and decision-makers. As the conference motto says, make the groundwater visible! This is supported by the video available here:

https://iah2021belgium.org/iah-belgium-2021/thesmurfs/

The coordinator of the EFG Panel of Experts on Geothermal Energy with the IAH Vice Presidents and the organisers

The results of the votes for the IAH Vice President, Programme and Science Coordination were announced here, with Marco Petitta, former coordinator of the EFG Panel of Experts on Hydrogeology, being elected.

Congratulations to him!

All in all, it was great to meet live again and discuss current issues in person, sometimes over a beer, the most important ingredient of which is clean fresh water!

EFG was proud to be a media partner of the event and thanks Janos Szanyi, the coordinator of the EFG Panel of Experts on Geothermal Energy, for representing the Federation at this high level international event.