The 25th Congress of the International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research - Asia and Pacific Division (IAHR-APD) was held from July 19 to 22 in Incheon, South Korea. Hosted by the Korea Water Resources Association, the congress focused on the theme “Hydro-Environment in the Era of Climate Change and AI” and brought together around 700 participants from 35 countries and regions.
Dr. Jiang Yunzhong, Vice President of IWHR, led a delegation of Chinese water experts to attend the Congress. At the high-level dialogue on July 21, Jiang delivered a keynote presentation titled “Pumped Storage: The New Engine Driving High-Quality Development of Water Sector.”
Centered on China’s carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals, Jiang elaborated on the strategic role of pumped storage hydropower in the new power system. He introduced China’s current progress, future plans, and global standing in pumped storage development, highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence and big data in shaping the future of hydropower, and showcased IWHR’s technological strengths and applications in intelligent centralized control.
Jiang emphasized that pumped storage hydropower is becoming a key force in supporting renewable energy integration, ensuring the safe and stable operation of power grids, and promoting the high-quality development of hydropower infrastructure.
During the Congress, IWHR hosted the 4th Global River Symposium as a special session, focusing on “Asian Water Culture and River Ethics” and inviting representatives from Asian countries to exchange views and experience. In his opening remarks, Jiang noted that the Global River Symposium is a flagship event of River, an IWHR-initiated journal. He introduced China’s vision of creating rivers of flood security, of health, and of happiness, as well as the country’s approach to river ethics.
Jiang also called for stronger international cooperation and knowledge sharing in river governance, with a view to promoting harmonious human-nature coexistence and contributing Asian insights and solutions to global water governance.
IWHR experts attended the high-level dialogue and related thematic sessions during the Congress, delivering academic presentations on topics including the sustainable development of pumped storage hydropower, flood resilience for housing, traditional culture and modern risk-avoidance wisdom, irrigation engineering heritage and natural and cultural environments, river ethics and its practical applications, ecological compensation for networked water transfer projects, simulation and optimization of reclaimed water pipeline systems, and assessment of the impacts of reservoir sediment flushing on downstream river channels.
The experts also attended meetings of the IAHR Council, the IAHR-APD Executive Committee, and the Governing Council of the Asian River Restoration Network (ARRN), actively participating in the decision-making and development of international water-related organizations.
