Hydrology 2020 : an integrating science to meet world water challenges

This book is the final output from the Hydrology 2020 Working Group, which comprised 12 young hydrological and water resources specialists. It considers the capability that hydrological sciences will, and should have by 2020, and what needs doing now in order to achieve this. Bottlenecks and challenges to progress in hydrological science may be categorized as scientific, technological, and organizational. The evolution of hydrology is at a point where many of the complex problems that exist can only be solved with improved political and organizational support, with more funds committed over the long term to technological development, research and monitoring, and with an emphasis on coupled scientific approaches. Interdisciplinary research within and between hydrology and other disciplines is essential. To help make progress the Working Group recommends the establishment of a global hydrological intergovernmental organising mechanism the main task of which would be to strengthen coordination and cooperation among existing international organizations in the fields of water resources management and hydrology. The report discusses the nature of the proposed mechanism and presents a number of other recommendations.