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Andrea

Uncertainty Quantification Framework for Nutrient Load Estimation

Bruno Bezerra Bluhm from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) stayed at the ICWRGC from 13 May – 12 November 2019 to write his master’s thesis on the topic “Uncertainty Quantification Framework for Nutrient Load Estimation”. He successfully defended his thesis at TUM on 5 December 2019.

Nutrient loads, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, are a key indicator of water quality monitoring, management and assessment, particularly regarding eutrophication. Although flow data is commonly available in continuous forms, monitoring programs often sample concentration following low-frequency policies, which hinders flux calculations. This consequently limits purposes of load estimations, since, in order for the metric to be used in evaluations, its uncertainty must be within an expected threshold. This Master’s thesis conceives an uncertainty quantification framework to be used by an existing load estimation algorithm from GEMStat. The framework calculates expected errors by matching a target station, i.e. scarce data, and a reference station, i.e. continuous data. Brazil, a major GEMStat partner, has been selected as a case study to define the target station baseline. By performing Monte Carlo Simulations and credibility-based assessments, the framework evaluates which estimation algorithm is most suitable and what are the expected levels of uncertainty, given in three forms: credible interval, relative absolute error, and classification (under or overestimation). Expanding the current database to include a greater range of reference stations is the main challenge to improve the framework’s usability in the future.

If you are interested in reading the entire pdf of the master thesis, you may contact Mr. Bluhm at:

Germany re-elected: four more years in the Council of UNESCO’s IHP Water Programme

The 40th General Conference of UNESCO from 12 – 27.11.2019 in Paris, passed decisive resolutions. The composition of the IHP Intergovernmental Council, among other things, has been newly resolved. The IHP was launched in 1974. Membership in the limited group of participants of the IHP Intergovernmental Council automatically ends after 4 years. This year, this was the case for Germany and a number of other states. Germany counts among Region 1 of the six UNESCO regions.

The re-election is an appreciation of Germany’s active role in the technical and political support of the IHP. The content of Phase 9 of IHP (IHP IX), with a term from 2022 to 2029, is just being prepared and agreed.

New UNESCO Chair “Human-Water-Systems“ at the University of Bonn

Prof. Dr. Mariele Evers from the Institute of Geography of the University of Bonn has received the UNESCO’s approval to establish the UNESCO Chair for “Human-Water-Systems“. Aside from the UNESCO Chair for Hydrological Change and Water Resources Management held by Prof. Dr. Heribert Nacken at RWTH Aachen University, it is the only UNESCO Chair in the field of hydrology in Germany. As Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the IHP/HWRP National Committee, Prof. Dr. Evers is closely linked to the ICWRGC and familiar with its work. On the occasion of the participation of Prof. Dr. Evers and her students in a presentation organized by the ICWRGC, the teams of ICWRGC, GRDC and IKSR congratulated her on this outstanding award.

New scientific officer at the ICWRGC

Ms. Renee van Dongen joined the ICWRGC team as a scientific officer and project coordinator of the URSACHEN project on November 1st.. URSACHEN is a joint project of the Federal Institute of Hydrology and the ICWRGC.

Renee received both her Bachelor and Master degree from Wageningen University in the Netherlands. She specialized in the fields of soil science, geomorphology and hydrology. Renee’s Master thesis focuses on gully erosion in the Awach-Kano region in Kenya. Within the scope of her thesis, she worked closely together with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF).

After obtaining her Master degree, Renee started her doctoral studies at the German Research Institute for Geosciences (GFZ) in Potsdam, Germany. Her PhD-project was part of a German-Chilean research initiative called “EarthShape”, an interdisciplinary project focusing on Earth Surface Shaping by Biota. In her PhD, Renee investigated the way in which vegetation and soils modulate catchment hydrology, and the effects on long-term river incision. The study areas were located on a climatic gradient in Chile.

Renee will be part of the ICWRGC team for the next three years. The URSACHEN project will focus on the spatial and temporal uncertainties in the monitoring of water quality and sediment transport parameters. Renee’s tasks include project coordination, applying the project results to the GEMStat database and developing a tool for the uncertainty calculation of GEMStat data.

Contribution to GEO Ministerial Summit

 

The world data centres for precipitation and discharge, together with GTN-H, contribute to the GEO Ministerial Summit.

Ministers from GEO’s 105 member governments, business leaders, heads of international non-profit organisations and passionate experts will meet in Canberra, Australia for GEO Week 2019 and the GEO Ministerial Summit, 4-9 November.

Moreover, the United Nations Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment will convene organisations from across sectors in Australia on the topic of Big Data and Frontier Technologies.

Jointly with the Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) and the Global Runoff Data Centre (GRDC), the Global Terrestrial Network for Hydrology (GTN-H) shows some examples of innovative integrated data products, such as observations of the global freshwater fluxes into the oceans. The e-poster is located at the German booth, in the zone of the European Commission.

www.earthobservations.orgMapping the future: UN-SPBF to hold high-level meetings at GEO Week 2019The Global Runoff Data CentreGlobal Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC)The Global Terrestrial Network – Hydrology (GTN-H)

2nd Meeting of the World Water Quality Alliance

 

Ispra, Italy, 16-19 September 2019

Organised by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, the 2nd Global Workshop of the World Water Quality Alliance (WWQA) was held in Ispra, Italy between 16-19 September 2019.

Aim of the alliance is to provide governments and other stakeholders with relevant evidence-based assessments, scenarios, solutions and services on water quality issues. The meeting was attended by participants of more than 50 organisations to provide a mutual overview of their work as well as to set the future working focus of the Alliance.

At the meeting, the ICWRGC was represented by the team of the GEMS/Water Data Centre.

Vertreter von mehr als 50 Organisationen nahmen an dem Workshop der World Water Quality Alliance (WWQA) in Ispra teil.

Link to the official press release:

https://www.unenvironment.org/

Current news on the Alliance at Twitter:

https://twitter.com/UN_WWQA

9th Session of the Global Terrestrial Network for Hydrology (GTN-H)

The Global Terrestrial Network for Hydrology met on 25-27 September 2019 for its biennial panel meeting at the International Centre for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC) in Koblenz, Germany.

The GTN-H is a joint effort of the World Meteorological Organization / Climate and Water Department (WMO/CLW) and the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) . It furtherrepresents the observational arm of the freshwater-related activities of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) and the Integrated Global Water Cycle Observations Theme (IGWCO).

During the meeting, the federated data centres demonstrated their value and progress. Additionally, current developments and challenges of data availability for the water cycle were discussed. In particular, it was discussed how GTN-H, with its federated data centres, can contribute to WMO within the scope of the GCOS Implementation Plan, with respect to hydrological data operations and management (according to Resolution 25 of the last WMO congress Cg-18), to UNESCO IHP and to several activities of the 2020?2022 GEO Work Programme.

Important outcomes were

  • strengthening the discoverability services of GTN-H partner networks with the aim of a one-stop shop for global in-situ observations of the water cycle including water quality
  • supporting integrative data products
  • improving the exchange of process, knowledge and products of the partner networks via the GTN-H website

A meeting report will provide the information and agreements on the GTN-H workplan 2019-21.

Teilnehmende Netzwerke waren:

  • The Global Runoff Data Centre (GRDC)
  • The International Soil Moisture Network (ISMN)
  • The International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre (IGRAC)
  • The Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC)
  • The GEMS Water Data Centre (GEMStat, GWDC)
  • Aquastat of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
  • The International Data Centre on Hydrology of Lakes and Reservoirs (HYDROLARE)
  • Hydroweb
  • The Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation and in Rivers (GNIP/GNIR)

ICWRGC’s visit to the Dutch UNESCO Category 2-Centre Delft IHE

The heads of ICWRGC and IHE devoted a whole day’s time to coordinate their fields of cooperation in Delft on 16 August 2019. The UNESCO Cat. 2-Centre IGRAC (International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre) hosted by IHE also attended the meeting. The exchange of ideas on water resources management in the historical Prinsenkamer was very fruitful. Numerous high-level experts of IHE also attended the round table. Specific tasks of cooperation in various subject areas were were agreed. These notably focus on synergies for co-shaping the UN Water Programmes and on further advancing the existing goals.

Apply now: Scientific officer (m/w/d), M. Sc. in Geosciences, Social Sciences, Cultural or Communication Sciences

The International Center for Water Resources and Global Change (ICWRGC) located at the Federal Institute of Hydrology in Koblenz, Germany, seeks to appoint a

Scientific officer (m/w/d), M. Sc. in Geosciences, Social Sciences, Cultural or Communication Sciences

within the scope of the “CO-MICC” project. It is a temporary position on a part-time basis, starting at the earliest possible date and ending on 31.10.2020.

The place of employment is Koblenz, Germany.

www.bav.bund.de

18th WMO Congress Takes Landmark Decisions

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has realigned itself by passing numerous resolutions in June 2019. Particularly noteworthy are

The new Strategic Plan of WMO (2020–2023) reflects the requirements arising from the Agenda 2030, the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.  It enumerates three superordinate categories:

  1. Better preparation for hydrometeorological extremes, notably to prevent casualties and damages to critical infrastructure;
  2. Support in climate-friendly decision-making, to allow and improve adaptability and resilience against climate risks;
  3. Improving WMO services in the fields of weather, climate, and hydrology.

The adopted Governance Body Reform, much supported by Germany, is another milestone for WMO. The WMO’s existing structures have proven to be too inflexible and unable to react adequately to current developments. Instead of eight technical commissions, there will be two commissions in future, one for Infrastructure, Information Systems and Observations, and another one for Application and Services. A Scientific Advisory Panel, independently advising the Executive Council and the Congress concerning research issues, has also been established. Furthermore, a Technical Coordination Committee (TCC) and a Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) have been set up. The TCC will take on a key role and will coordinate the work of the two new technical commissions, the regional associations and research.

The adopted “Geneva Declaration – 2019: Building Community for Weather, Climate and Water Actions”  calls for closer cooperation between the public, private and acedemic sectors and includes a commitment for the free exchange of weather data.

Prof. Dr. Gerhard Adrian, permanent German representative to WMO and Head of the Deutscher Wetterdienst, is the first German in the history of WMO to be elected President.

Hydrology has received reinforcement in the new structure – in spite of the abolition of the Hydrological Commission (CHy). The reinforcement is implemented by means of the new Hydrological Coordination Panel and the Hydrological Assembly, where the Heads of the National Hydrological Services (NHS) and the Hydrological Advisors (HA) of the Permanent Representatives of the Member States are represented and may bring in proposals for resolutions. The Director of the German Federal Institute of Hydrology (BfG), Dr. Esser, acts as NHS for Germany, while the Director of the ICWRGC, Harald Köthe, acts as HA. As hydrological advisor and representative of the BfG’s management, Mr. Köthe participated in the essential negotiations as a member of the German delegation.

In a panel discussion dealing with Water and Peace that was also attended by the German Ambassador Mr. von Ungern-Sternberg, there was consensus that water data are of central importance for the development of peacemaking water management solutions in regions with transboundary water resources. All panel members criticized the lack of one central voice for water within the UN system. They unanimously demanded better cooperation of the UN Family in the water sector. Ambassador von Ungern-Sternberg pointed out that water was becoming an increasingly important safety-relevant factor. WMO could become more important, as climate change and water crises were receiving more attention in world politics. However, WMO should not only rely on its scientific-technical skills, but should also improve its political communication.

The Hydrological Assembly  and the Congress passed two pioneering hydrological resolutions, i.a. including the WMO’s 8 long-term hydrological goals. It highlighted the significance of the existing global water data centres and their coordinating mechanism (Global Terrestrial Network Hydrology – GTN-H) that has been under the ICWRGC’s mandate since 2017.

The new WMO resolutions on Earth System Research  are also important for hydrology and freshwater management. They underscore the necessity for interaction of the water programmes of various UN-organisations and the weather, climate, water and ecosystem monitoring networks for the generation of seamless predictions and projections of future water resources.