CCOP-KIGAM-UNESCO-MME Workshop on Climate Change and Groundwater Resources in the Mekong River Basin

In collaboration with KIGAM, UNESCO in Bangkok and General Department of Mineral Resources (GDMR) of Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) of Cambodia, the CCOP Technical Secretariat has successfully co-organized the Workshop on Climate Change and Groundwater Resources in the Mekong River Basin on 1-2 June 2016 in Sihanoukville, Cambodia. The objective of the workshop is to promote sharing information and best practices among Mekong countries for assessing availability of groundwater resources under climate change and to support member countries to prepare for sustainable groundwater management plan. There was attendance by 28 participants from 6 Mekong countries & resource persons from Korea (KIGAM, C&H, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology - GIST, EcoEnergySolution), UNESCO, USGS and CCOPTS.

Keynote presentations given by UNESCO, KIGAM, CCOP, USGS, C&H and EcoEnergySolutions provided not only introduction on the project, overview of the groundwater potential and climate change issues in the whole CCOP region, implemented and on-going activities, monitoring system but also technological application possibilities for solving groundwater problems. The country reports by 6 Mekong countries addressed major issues and status of groundwater management with changing environment. This session was followed by a discussion on strategy to enhance collaboration between neighboring countries to manage wisely the groundwater resource and adapt future climate change. On the second day, a field trip was arranged for all participants to visit water treatment plants and groundwater wells/reservoirs on Koh Rong island.

The workshop provided a good opportunity to further understanding of dynamic relationship between climate change and groundwater, and to provide a strategy for sustainable groundwater resource management over Mekong River Basin.

CCOP, KIGAM and UNESCO plan to publish the country reports in a special volume of Journal of Groundwater Science and Engineering. Based on the submitted manuscripts of country reports, editing is on progress.