Nebraska flooding update: The conference is “on”! The City of Omaha’s flood wall and levee system protected the airport and downtown area from flooding along this part of the Missouri River.
Other notes:
Driving to the conference: If traveling through Nebraska on highways other than Interstates 76 or 80, or if traveling through Iowa on Interstate 29 or smaller highways near the Missouri River, please check road conditions prior to travel on Nebraska’s 511 and/or Iowa’s 511 online systems. Many bridges and roads on rural highways were washed out, and I-29, which runs along the Missouri River has several closures due to flooding (as of 1 pm, 3/19/2019).
Field trips: Unfortunately, both Field Trips for the Spring Specialty Conference have been cancelled due to Platte River flooding. All field trip participants have been notified. If you need further information, please contact AWRA.
Flood viewing: Is discouraged so emergency personnel can operate freely. However, anyone who is interested can walk north of the hotel, about 1 mile, to the National Park Service office (it is open) to view the Missouri River post-historic high flows. The Omaha Missouri River stream gauge is just south of this location. Again, Omaha’s flood wall and levy system have kept this area safe.
Integrated Water
Resources Management (IWRM) principles support the sustainable
management of water through collaboration, innovative science and
technology, as well as community-based planning and implementation. At
its best, IWRM applies knowledge from various disciplines and diverse
stakeholders to devise and implement equitable and sustainable solutions
to water-related issues. Since IWRM’s inception in the early 1990s, a
growing number of organizations have adopted or been empowered to enact
the principles of IWRM in day-to-day activities.
Following in the steps
of the 2011 and 2014 AWRA IWRM conferences, the 2019 AWRA Spring
Specialty Conference will support dialog, sharing and learning about the
tactics, strategies and policies that are helping IWRM succeed across
North America and the world. Researchers, practitioners and academics
will assemble in Nebraska - a state that has implementing IWRM for over a
decade - to consider how IWRM can become the normative model of water
management, or simply, “how we do things.”
Keynote Speaker
Tony Willardson
Executive Director, Western States Water Council, Murray, UT
"Governing with Imagination: Managing the Unmanageable"
Water is an increasingly scarce and precious resource. An integrated, collaborative, and grassroots approach to water resources management is essential, and should be recognized as a critical public policy priority. Our vision is to ensure an adequate, secure and sustainable supply of water of suitable quality to meet our diverse economic and environmental needs now and in the future. This will require stronger collaboration and cooperation that transcends political and geographic boundaries between states, federal agencies, tribes, and local communities.
Field Trips
The Field Trips for the Spring Specialty Conference have been cancelled due to severe flooding in and surrounding the tour sites. If you need further information, please contact AWRA.
Note: If you do not already have an AWRA account you will need to create one prior to registration. If you have an AWRA account, please log in to register.