BACKGROUND:
The Group of Experts in Hydrogeology and Hydrogeological Mapping -GEHIDRO- was formed in 2018 in compliance with the agreements of the XXIV ASGMI General Assembly held in August 2018 in the city of Salta, Argentina, and consolidated its structure, activity and work program at the ASGMI Workshop on Hydrogeology, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in September 2019, organized by CPRM-Brazil Geological Survey.
The group is coordinated by Dr. João Alberto Oliveira Diniz, CPRM-Brazil Geological Survey, with the support as adjunct coordination of Dr. Alcides Aguirre Corrales, Geological Survey of Colombia, and Dr. Raquel Morales García, Geological and Mining Institute of Spain.
MISSION AND VISION OF THE GROUP OF EXPERTS IN HYDROGEOLOGY AND HYDROGEOLOGICAL MAPPING:
The fundamental mission of GEHIDRO is the elaboration of the Hydrogeological Map of South America at scale 1:5,000,000, and of the associated data on the basis of the Groundwater Information System -SIAGAS-, a technological platform that CPRM-Brazil Geological Survey will transfer to the geological services members of ASGMI that formally request it, in compliance with the Interinstitutional Agreement between ASGMI and CPRM signed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in September 2019.
The group’s vision is to become a reference group in Ibero-America in the knowledge of groundwater resources and to provide this knowledge as an essential tool for the effective management of these resources and their protection against contamination.
SHORT AND MEDIUM-TERM OBJECTIVES:
Following the face-to-face Workshop held in Brasilia, GEHIDRO agreed on the following:
- Given the scale of the Hydrogeological Map being developed, it is concluded that this map is of great interest for scientific, educational and dissemination purposes, but not as an administrative resource for the management of groundwater resources, so it is considered appropriate to limit the scope, human resources and time devoted to its dedication. Given the scale of the map, the asymmetry in terms of available data among the countries of the region and the difficulty in obtaining them, the work team will have to reach a consensus on a minimum threshold of information that will make it possible to achieve the proposed objectives.
- The possibility and convenience of continuing the project with the Hydrogeological Map of Central America and the Caribbean is proposed.
- It is proposed to prepare a glossary of hydrogeological terms used in the different countries and, with the support of the ASGMI Expert Group on Geographic Information Systems, to establish criteria for the homogenization and correlation of data to facilitate the exchange of information since there is no unified database.
WORKSHOPS CELEBRATED:
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. International Workshop on Hydrogeology and Hydrogeological Mapping, held September 10-13, 2019 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and organized by the Geological Survey of Brazil -CPRM.
MINUTES OF AGREEMENTS
OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH AND ATTENDEES
PRESENTATIONS
