Resilience focus for 2019 groundwater conference

Climate change, finite water resources, resource management and energy-future challenges all play a role in Australia’s groundwater security. The 2019 Australasian Groundwater Conference (AGC2019) will bring together groundwater experts to implement innovative groundwater solutions to meet Australia’s resilience aims.

The Brisbane event will host more than 500 of Australasia’s groundwater experts, with international speakers, to reveal the latest research into groundwater science and management.

The three-day conference will explore topics including mapping water trends across Australia, drinking water security in Asia and the Pacific, risks associated with fracking, and the conservation and management of groundwater with Indigenous stakeholders.

Speakers will highlight:

• The role that groundwater storage (‘managed aquifer recharge’) has in improving drought resilience and minimising water losses from surface water evaporation.
• How improvements in groundwater modelling science have increased our understanding of interactions between energy systems (onshore gas; geosequestation; geothermal) and groundwater systems.
• The latest in PFAS contamination research and solutions.
• The role that next-generation ‘water fingerprinting’ (groundwater isotope studies) has in determining the age and providence of our groundwater resources.
• The role Indigenous groundwater research can play in modern groundwater practices.
• New techniques for characterising and managing groundwater dependent ecosystems.
   

Conference Chair Professor Jim Underschultz said that with the theme of Groundwater in a Changing World, AGC2019 is the pre-eminent gathering of water resource professionals in the Southern Hemisphere that happens once every two years.

“Groundwater is increasingly recognised as a vital element in world water resource management and an important contributor to global health, economies, and social and environmental wellbeing.

“Academic, government, consulting and industry members of the International Association of Hydrogeologists from the Australasian region will explore recent advancements in hydrogeology and water resources management, the implications of climate change and the impacts on agricultural, resource and infrastructure industries.”

Jointly hosted by the International Association of Hydrogeologists Australia (IAH) and the National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training (NCGRT) at Flinders University, the groundwater conference will be held at the Brisbane Convention and Expo Centre.

To be opened by Queensland’s Chief Scientist Professor Paul Bertsch, the conference will feature six plenary presentations, 295 oral presentations, 90 poster presentations and five panel sessions, bringing together a mix of industry leaders, policymakers and scientists.

What: Australasian Groundwater Conference 2019

When: 24–27 November 2019

Where: Brisbane Convention and Expo Centre

Web: www.groundwaterconference.com.au

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/prudkov