Louisiana’s sometimes drastic hurricane season is proof the world’s water source is an essential lifeline requiring research and management on an international level.
These topics will be discussed at the Transatlantic Water Symposium, “Water: Friend or Foe.” The event is part of the International Water Conference, which will be held on Monday and Tuesday in the Abel Room of the Lod Cook Alumni Center on Lakeshore Drive.
Craig Colten, University geography and anthropology professor, said there will be a panel of 20 experts from Europe and a dozen American states.
Monday’s sessions will be held 12:30 to 7 p.m. and include discussions of water quality and management from an international perspective.
From 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, the sessions will highlight river ecosystems and aquatic biology. There will also be a trip to New Orleans to allow the experts to view the river and hurricane levee systems and other aspects of the the city’s water system.
Colten said the panel of experts is driving to the city to examine its flood preparations.
“We’ll look at the Bonnet Carre Spillway,” Colten said. “We’ll look at the levees in New Orleans along the river as well.”
The conference will feature an expert’s forum and public discussion, according to a University news release.
There will be discussion among the experts who will be talking on water issues, and [the discussion] will be open to comments from the public,” Colten said.
The main objective of the conference is to find an approach to manage water sources that addresses economic, environmental and social concerns.
The conference also aims to use the expert’s forum as an opportunity to exchange research and management practices between Europe and America.
Through an arrangement known as ConRuhr, various universities in Germany are presenting the event. LSU’s Office of Research and Development, the Louisiana Water Resources Research Institute and the Department of Geography and Anthropology are hosting the group of water experts.
The conference is open to students and faculty, and no registration fee is required. This is the first time the University has held this event.
“This is a rare opportunity where LSU is able to host this group of international scholars,” Colten said.
—-Contact Ben Bourgeois at [email protected].