Shill alert!
I just returned home from NGWA's utterly delightful First International Conference on Nonrenewable Ground Water Resources [Disclosure notice: Todd Jarvis and I co-chaired it.]
We had a cozy group of 55 on the banks of the Columbia River in Portland. Since there were no concurrent sessions, we "stayed together" for two full days to hear 26 presentations. It was an international group, with attendees from the USA, Spain, Canada, Australia, and Turkey.
The interaction was phenomenal - what you'd expect at a Penrose, Gordon, or Theis conference. Even Kathy Butcher, NGWA's meetings guru, commented upon it.
The highlight for me was the pre-conference dinner on 12 October 2008, with hydrogeologists M. Ramón Llamas, T.N. "Nari" Narisimhan, Lucia De Stefano, John Shomaker, and John's wife, Dianna. It was great absorbing the collective wisdom of John, Nari, and Ramon. Listening to Nari, who has an amazing command of the history of hydrogeology, was a joy. And Ramón, although formally retired, is still tilting at windmills. I should be half as active when I am 77.
Listening to stories about Stan Davis, Roger J.M. DeWiest, O.E. Meinzer, C.V. Theis, C.E. Jacob, Mahdi Hantush, David K. Todd, et al., was quite a way to spend the evening.
It's apparent that there is interest in this topic, despite today's emphasis on sustainability and renewability. It was a refreshing change. Reminds me of the comment I received from the Fifth World Water Forum when I proposed a session on NR GW: "I don't think anyone else is doing that." Yep, I know.
I will provide a synopsis of the conference highlights within a few weeks.
We may do another conference on this topic in 2-3 years. Stay tuned.
"Mon Dieu! Why didn't they have conferences like this when I was alive?" - H. Darcy
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