Bangkok--21 Jan--Asian Institute of Technology
Seven Asian countries feature among the top 15 groundwater using countries in the world, accounting for three-quarters of global groundwater abstraction. Such facts and issues concerning groundwater management in Asian countries were the focus of the two-day workshop organized by the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) on 16-17 January 2014.
Delivering the keynote address, Prof. Mukand S Babel of Water Engineering and Management (WEM) field of study of AIT’s School of Engineering and Technology (SET) stated the issue of groundwater abstraction can be described as the ‘tragedy of the commons.’ He mentioned that India, China, United States, Pakistan and Iran are the top five groundwater using countries. Highlighting the challenges related to groundwater, Prof. Babel remarked that one of the ways forward is to consider the concept of “sustainable yield” rather than “safe yield.”
The workshop on “Enhancing the groundwater management capacity in Asian cities through the development and application of groundwater sustainability index in the context of climate change,” witnessed participation from eight countries including Thailand, India, Indonesia, Japan, Lao, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Nepal.
Welcoming the participants Prof. Sivanappan Kumar, Vice President for Academic Affairs stated that AIT is dedicated to Sustainable Development issues, and its two academic programs of Water Engineering and Management (WEM) and Urban Environmental Management (UEM) are closely linked with the topics under discussion at the workshop. AIT is engaged in teaching, research and training of water related issues, Prof. Kumar said, as he appreciated the participation of AIT students in the workshop.
Dr. Akio Takemoto, Director, Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), provided an overview of the activities of APN. Dr. Jariya Boonjawaat, Scientific Planning Group, APN (Thailand) also informed the participants about the activities of APN. Established in 1996 as a result of the 1990 White House Conference on Science and Economics Research Related to Global Change, APN is a network of 22 member country governments that promote global change research in the region.
Dr. Sangam Shrestha of WEM stated that the workshop seeks to enhance understanding among policy makers on Groundwater Sustainability Index and Driver, Pressure, State, Impact, Response (DPSIR) framework as the analytical framework for reaching the goal of achieving good groundwater status.
The regional workshop is an activity planned under the project supported by APN and jointly implemented by AIT, Thailand; Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), Japan; and International Research Center for River Basin Environment (ICRE), University of Yamanashi, Japan.
Photo Caption: Dr. Akio Takemoto