April 2, 2018 – The College of Agriculture and Human Sciences (CAHS) joined the global community to celebrate the annual World Water Day on March 22nd. This year, the theme of the celebration was Nature for Water – Exploring Nature-based Solutions to the Water Challenges We Face in the 21st Century. The CAHS Water Team displayed posters, water quality and quantity equipment, and peer-reviewed articles published by its individual members. The team demonstrated how water quality and quantity is monitored using state-of-the-art instrumentation. While introducing the five-member Water Team to the attendees, Ali Fares, the Interim Dean and Director of Land Grant Programs, gave a brief overview of water-related research conducted at the Cooperative Agricultural Research Center (CARC) highlighting the importance of World Water Day to the students.
Ripendra Awal, a hydrologist and licensed pilot of remote small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS), also referred to as drones, explained to the students the highly technical usage of this modern technology in agricultural and water resources research. Ram Ray shared the results of one of his studies on the impact of land use change and droughts on groundwater storage in Texas. Post-doctoral scholar, Almoutaz Elhassan, demonstrated to the students how to take a soil water solution using suction cups and standard soil water sampling techniques. Haimanote Bayabil illustrated the concept of a water footprint with a poster presentation. He further explained how the use of the concept allows water researchers to quantify the amount of water necessary to produce a given product or to provide a specific service.
A special thanks is extended to all event organizers including the Water Team and collaborating researcher, Peter Ampim. With their efforts, the event provided an opportunity to feature some of the skills and capabilities of the CARC to students in the college and across campus.
Photos taken by Dr. Ripendra Awal.
Ripendra Awal, Ph.D.
Research Scientist, Natural Resources and Environmental Systems Research
(936) 261-5092
riawal@pvamu.edu