Mississippi's annual Water Resources Research Conference is set for April 24-25 at the Hilton Hotel in Jackson
Eight sessions will cover topics including Delta groundwater, modeling, invasive plant species, agriculture, sedimentation, wastewater and water treatment, surface water quality, flooding, and water supply.
During the two-day conference there will be more than 36 presentations, a large poster session, and nine national and regional leaders addressing important and timely water issues facing the state and nation.
The opening session line-up includes Brandon Presley, mayor of Nettleton; Col. Alfred Bleakley, deputy commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Mississippi Valley District; Ted Leininger, U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Bottomland Hardwoods Laboratory; Trudy Fisher, executive director of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality; and Bill Walker, executive director of the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources.
Conference sponsors include the state's Department of Environmental Quality and Public Service Commission, the Mississippi Water Resources Association, the Water Resources Research Institute at Mississippi State University, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Luncheon speakers are Leonard Bentz, southern district public service commissioner on the 24th and Jamie Franks, chairman of the Conservation and Water Resources committee in the Mississippi House of Representatives on the 25th.
The closing session includes presentations by Mary Beth Wilkerson, deputy director for the Mississippi Development Authority's tourism division and LaDon Swann, director of the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium.
Registration is available on-line at www.wrri.msstate.edu/conference.htm. Registration prior to April 2 is $95.00 and $125 after that date. A special discounted rate of $40.00 is available for students.
