The Susquehanna River Basin Commission will hold the 2013 Susquehanna Water Science Forum – From Science to Sustainable Water Resources Management on October 7 and 8 at the Radisson Hotel Harrisburg in Camp Hill, across the Susquehanna River from Harrisburg.

This first-of-its-kind Forum is designed to encourage, publicize and disseminate research to ensure that the best available scientific information is used to establish priorities and support sustainable water resource management in the Susquehanna River Basin.

Water resource professionals and researchers will share current water resource research in the Susquehanna basin. Public and private interests will focus on applied research in water resource management, providing a catalyst for continued coordination and development.

Forum topics include: Identifying Greatest Stressors to Aquatic Ecosystem Integrity; Evaluating Effects of Stressors; Balancing Competing Uses for Long-term Sustainability; and Using Science to Achieve Balanced Policy and Regulation.

Forum research presentations of particular interest to the public include: Special session on the river's Smallmouth Bass population; Researching the potential impacts of natural gas drilling on river ecosystems and water resources; Pharmaceutical by-products in river ecosystems; and Impacts of atmospheric mercury deposition and accumulation in Pennsylvania watersheds.

The Forum will host more than 25 distinguished panelists and speakers, including water resource leaders, academics, planners, biologists, engineers, hydrologists and other professionals.

Keynote speakers include Dr. Donald Boesch, president of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science; Dr. Robert Hirsch, research hydrologist at the U.S. Geological Survey; Dr. Raymond Najjar, professor of oceanography at Pennsylvania State University, Department of Meteorology, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences; and Dr. James Richenderfer, deputy executive director and director of technical programs for SRBC.

Keynote Speakers will address climate change in the Susquehanna River, long-term changes in river flow (and flooding) and water quality of the Susquehanna River, and the Susquehanna River's impact on the Chesapeake Bay.

Sponsors for the Forum include McNees Wallace & Nurick, LLC; Metro Bank; QBN Development Group, LLC; Runwell Solutions, Inc.; Wells Fargo Advisors; and Wevodau Insurance & Benefit Strategies, Inc.

For more information, visit the Susquehanna Water Science Forum webpage.

10/7/2013