ERB Objectives and Member States

What is the ERB?

The Euromediterranean Network of Experimental and Representative Basins (ERB) is an open association of 22 European countries operating and managing well instrumented experimental and representative basins for hydrological and environmental research on a long term basis. The ERB network promotes the exchange of basin information and the cooperation in international programs as FRIEND, HELP and PUB.

The main objectives are :

To increase relationships between members, research teams, universities and basin managers, through exchanging hydrological information, data, research methods, or models, as well as to organise visits and biennial conferences;
To enable joint studies of common interest;
To make data available and exchange data between research groups;
To harmonize methods of data collection and processing.

Scientific topics and conferences

Despite the large diversity of hydrological problems in our countries there appears always a convergence of hydrological topics of common interest in small basin research to formulate themes of our conferences to which scientists of all member countries can contribute. Examples are: hydrological monitoring, runoff generation, hydrological and environmental modelling, biogeochemical processes, extremes, uncertainties in data and model concepts, effects of natural and man-made changes, erosion, sedimentation, hillslope processes, etc. The organizing country may also select topics of more national or regional interest.

The biennial conferences are very important occasions to present and discuss research and to exchange experiences. Especially young scientists can benefit from these meetings by presenting their (PhD) research, discussing their ideas and exchange data to test their hypotheses and model concepts. Since 1986 scientific topics of common interest were discussed during ERB conferences.

National Representatives

Each ERB member country is represented by a national correspondent NC, who informs the national hydrological community about the activities of ERB. Usually the NC is nomited by the national UNESCO-IHP committee. The NC meet regularly in steering committee meetings SCM where joint activities like conferences and workshops are defined. The SCM is represented by the ERB International Coordinator, who serves as a spokesman of ERB for a period of four years.

Current National Correspondents

Bano Mehdi-Schulz, Austria
Niko Verhoest, Belgium
Ivan Canjevac, Croatia
Miroslav Tesar, Czech Republic
Ophelie Fovet, France
Britta Schmalz, Germany
Péter Kalicz, Hungary
Daniele Penna, Italy (ERB International Coordinator)
Edvinas Stonevičius, Lithuania
Christophe Hissler, Luxemburg
Adrian Teuling, The Netherlands
Remegio Confesor, Norway
Janusz Siwek, Poland
João de Lima, Portugal
Gianina Neculau, Romania
Olga Makarieva, Russia
Michal Danko, Slovakia
Simon Rusjan, Slovenia
Jérôme Latron, Spain
Ilja van Meerveld, Switzerland
Liudmyla Gorbachova, Ukraine
Finnland
Great Britain
Bulgaria

Collaboration

The ERB network is in close contact with other European countries to exchange basin information and cooperate in international programs such as FRIEND, namely Northern European FRIEND Project 5 „Catchment hydrological and biogeochemical processes in changing environment“. Both the ERB and NE FRIEND Project 5 groups recognise the benefits of close co-operation. Therefore, joint meetings and information exchanges are organized.

The conditions to become a member country are:

a new member country should have the capacity to operate and manage ERB studies and should be represented by an organization, rather than by an individual.
an university-trained group should back each ERB.
an ERB should be operated on a long-term basis.
high quality data are desired, and the water balance is regarded as the minimum data available.
research in an ERB should be active and ongoing.
new member countries are welcome under the condition of providing input and of nominating 1 or 2 correspondents to the Steering Committee.
new member countries should share the responsability, contribute to and distribute the Newsletters to scientists involved in ERB research.
the correspondents should be nominated through the National Committees for the International Hydrological Programme of UNESCO (IHP).
all member countries are expected to update the ERB.
report regularly (at least once per year) with recent information on their national ERBs.