A delegation of the Water Institute (WI) comprising Roy Brouwer, Neil Thomson and Philippe Van Cappellen visited São Paulo State on May 7-10, hosted by the Secretariat of the Environment of the São Paulo State government. The Secretariat integrates several agencies and institutes within the Environmental System of São Paulo (SAP), including the São Paulo State Environmental Agency (CETESB), the Forestry Foundation and the Geological Institute. The visit was facilitated by the Canadian Consulate in São Paulo, in particular thanks to the efforts of Mr. Patrick Courcelles.
During the first day a workshop on groundwater protection was held with presentations from the WI members and researchers from government and academia in São Paulo. During the second day, a field trip to the interior of São Paulo State was organized. The first stop was at old landfill near São Carlos city where several investigations are ongoing to assess groundwater pollution issues. The group further learned about threats to groundwater recharge areas, including urban development. Lunch was held at the Centre for Water Resources and Applied Ecology of the University of São Paulo (CHREA-USP) hosted by Dr. Edson Wendland. The last stop was at Morro do Facão, which offered a magnificent vista as the sun was setting. The third day in São Paulo was devoted to discussions on how to foster closer collaborations between WI and São Paulo. Philippe was tasked with coordinating a joint pre-proposal to the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI).