The 50th anniversary Hydrogeological Congress, organized by the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) and held September 18-22, 2023 in South Africa, themed “Groundwater: A matter of scale”, is behind us.

The Congress was attended by nearly 500 delegates, scientists and hydrogeology, hydrology, ecology, engineering sociology practitioners involved in the management and protection of water resources. Delegates from 53 countries around the world met to share knowledge and experience on a wide range of problems in hydrogeology and water management, discuss and seek inspiration for new, sustainable solutions to ensure the long-term protection and availability of groundwater for social and economic needs around the world.

Presentations and panel discussions, whose topics repeatedly touched on water scarcity and the impact of climate change on limiting water availability, were held in five parallel thematic sessions. More than 120 lectures were given, more than 200 posters were presented, and 11 special sessions were held. It was symbolic to discuss the problems of water availability in Africa, where these problems affect one in three people on the continent.

The organizers ensured not only a diverse and very high level of the conference, but, above all, emphasized the problem of Africa's water poverty by presenting a number of research and development projects conducted on the continent. The Congress did not lack a Polish accent. Employees of the Polish Geological Institute - NRI gave three lectures. Anna Kuczyńska, PhD, Eng. spoke in the session titled “Critical zone science - a multidisciplinary, cross scale science”, reporting on the results of experiments conducted by her team in developing appropriate field quality control procedures during water sampling for PFAS compounds and pharmaceuticals.

Anna Kuczyńska during her presentation at the IAH Congress

Tatiana Solovey during her presentation at the IAH Congress

Tatiana Solovey, PhD, presented the results of validating algorithms for estimating changes in water resources using satellite data from the GRACE gravity satellite mission.

Małgorzata Przychodzka during her presentation

Malgorzata Przychodzka, M.Sc., presented the results of a hydrodynamic model developed for the border area between Poland and Ukraine, showing how international cooperation can support sustainable management of water resources in transboundary areas.

Both lectures were the result of work carried out within the framework of the international EU-Waterres project (https://eu-waterres.eu/), led by the PGI - NRI. The participation of the PGI - NRI representatives at the Congress was a valuable contribution to the exchange of international experience.

This was not the only Polish accent at the Congress, as representatives of scientific centers from Poznań and Gdańsk also took part in the event.

Text: Anna Kuczyńska