  |
Newsletter No. 6
July 28, 2009: Dear Reader,
Groundwater remains a challenge, especially in an international context. Already for six years IGRAC facilitates and promotes international sharing of information and knowledge required for sustainable groundwater resources development and management. This has resulted in a number of activities and products, the most recent being mentioned below. Your comments and suggestions are more than welcome.
Transboundary Aquifers of the World
At WWF5, IGRAC officially presented an updated version of the Transboundary Aquifers map of the world. The map is freely available for download from the IGRAC portal and can be obtained as a hard copy on request.
Other transboundary aquifer activities at IGRAC are conducted within a worldwide ISARM programme. Further information on IGRAC engagement in Caucasus and Central Asia, Africa, Americas and Europe is available from IGRAC News and from the ISARM site.
Global Groundwater Monitoring Network - as initiated at the Utrecht workshop in October 2007 - has been embedded in various international programmes and organisations, among other the Global Terrestrial Network - Hydrology (GTN-H) and Group of Earth observations (GEO). Furthermore, the network web-based software application is now operational and ready to accommodate global groundwater monitoring information. Join the network!
Saline Groundwater Occurrence and Genesis
IGRAC has prepared a worldwide overview of saline and brackish groundwater at shallow and intermediate depths. The overview provides information on the occurrence (extent and depth) and the origin (marine, terrestrial, anthropogenic) of the saline/brackish groundwater bodies. A draft map is now available for your comments and suggestions. The map will be presented and further discussed during the IAH Congress in Hyderabad (India) in September.