Perth Laboratory – Public Seminar Series 2009

Transition to Water Resources Sustainability in a Developing Nation

Steven Gorelick,
Cyrus F. Tolman Professor of Earth Science
Department of Environmental Earth System Science
Stanford University, USA

*Wednesday 22 April 2009 at 3.30pm, CSIRO Auditorium

Abstract

Various regions of the world struggle to properly manage their water resources in a sustainable manner. Chennai (formerly Madras) in southeast India, with a population of over 4 million people, is a city with a piped public water-delivery system, but this supply is intermittent. The piped system normally provides water for only a few hours per day. However, during the drought of 2003-2004, water deliveries were suspended. Out of necessity, urban consumers have developed various ways to cope with the intermittent and unreliable supply, obtaining water from multiple sources. These sources include 400,000 private wells plus groundwater produced outside the city that is delivered by 3,500 private tanker trucks. The viability of the Chennai system is explored with an integrated economic-water supply model that is also used to evaluate future policy options.

About the speaker

Steven Gorelick holds the Cyrus F. Tolman Professorship in the School of Earth Sciences at Stanford University, where he has been a faculty member for 20 years. A hydrologist by training, his major research interests are currently in the areas of sustainable water management and ecohydrology. Steve runs the Stanford hydrogeology program and has co-authored over 100 journal papers, two books, and three patents. He is also author of “Oil Panic and the Global Crisis” which will come out later this year (Wiley-Blackwell – 2009).

Professor Gorelick is visiting CSIRO and UWA as a Fulbright Scholar through mid-September 2009.

• Hydrogeology and Water Resources Program, Stanford University
• Professor Steven Gorelick
  
  

*Note: this seminar is scheduled for Wednesday instead of the usual Thursday

For seminar information email Perth Seminars or phone (08) 9333 6221
Return to the main Seminars page