Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 : Addressing Water Challenges

Climate Change Forum 2012

“Eco-Engineering Forum: Addressing Water Challenges”

Hitachi’s annual eco-engineering forum aims to provide a platform for key U.S. opinion leaders and technological experts to actively discuss issues regarding the sustainable development of urban communities. The forum features panels organized by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and The Brookings Institution. The Hitachi Annual Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 is focused on addressing water challenges across cities and urban areas, and issues related to water usage in the hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) process.

In past years, the eco-engineering forum has attracted over 200 key opinion leaders from government, academia, non-profit organizations, and from industry.

To know more about Hitachi Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 activities, access the archived webcast of the Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 from the link below:

To view/download Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 Summary Report, please click the link below:

Event Details

The details regarding Hitachi Eco-Engineering Forum 2012 are given below:

Date:
Venue:
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Auditorium
1200 New York Avenue, NW, Washington DC 20005
(please use entrance on 12th and H Streets)
Organizer:
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), The Brookings Institution and Hitachi, Ltd.

Master of Ceremonies

Edward Derrick
Chief Program Director, Center of Science, Policy, and Society Programs
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Opening Remarks

Alan I. Leshner
Chief Executive Officer, AAAS
Executive Publisher, Science

Strobe Talbott
President
The Brookings Institution

Takashi Hatchoji
Chairman of the Board
Hitachi America, Ltd.

Keynote Presentation

John Tubbs
Deputy Assistant Secretary
Water and Science
Department of the Interior

9604
Improving the Fracking Water Cycle

Driven by advances in exploration and production technology, the U.S oil and natural gas sectors have undergone a revolution in recent years as vast amounts of previously uneconomic “unconventional” resources in shale formations have been deployed across the country. The continued development of unconventional resources depends on the safe and sustainable continuation of the practice of hydraulic fracturing ("fracking"), at present a highly water-intensive process. In addition to the large volumes of water required, fracking produces waste water that must either be treated and recycled or disposed of responsibly. With many fracking operations being conducted in areas of the country suffering from acute water shortages, there is increasing attention on the ways in which fracking can be conducted with greater water efficiency. This panel will address the range of issues related to water usage in the fracking process. It will examine lower-water alternatives to current fracking methods as well as new technical options for water treatment, disposal, and recycling being developed and tested in both the private and public sectors. It will examine the state and federal regulatory requirements for water use in fracking and seek to determine whether and how these should be updated to ensure the sustainability of the process.

Panelists

Bruce Baizel

Interim Director of the Oil and Gas Accountability Project,Earthworks

Julio Friedmann

Chief Energy Technologist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

James Richenderfer

Director of Technical Programs, Susquehanna River Basin Commission

James Slutz

President, Global Energy Strategies

Moderator

Charles Ebinger

Senior Fellow and Director, Energy Security Initiative, The Brookings Institution

9605
Confronting Water Issues in Cities and Urban Areas

More than half the world’s population today lives in cities and metro areas, with urbanization rates rapidly increasing. Behind increasing urbanization is an array of problems that city planners and policymakers must confront. One such challenge is the provision of fresh water to meet the most basic human needs. In the U.S. the challenge is two-fold: rebuilding an aging and outdated water infrastructure network, and constructing new infrastructure to meet the demands of a growing population. Dealing with these issues spans the private, public, and political realms and the fields of finance, environmental sustainability, technological innovation, and economic growth. The purpose of this panel is to confront the growing challenges of clean water in urban areas. It will focus on the U.S. and feature experts and practitioners that will describe real world examples and success stories of how water challenges are being met.

Panelists

Matthew Diserio

Co-Founder and President, Water Asset Management LLC

George Hawkins

General Manager, DC Water

Rich Meeusen

Co-Chair, Milwaukee Water Council / Chairman, President, and CEO.

Badger Meter, Inc.

Dave Norris

Mayor of West Monroe, LA

Shinjiro Ueda

Representative Director

Hitachi Plant Technologies, Ltd.

Moderator

Katherine Bliss

Director, Project on Global Water Policy, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

Hitachi Global “Environmental Activities”

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