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Status of the GNIP Network in 2001 2Web News on GNIP/ISOHIS 3The 3rd GNIP Scientific Steering Committee Meeting 4CRP on the Mediterranean Climate 4Tritium Interlaboratory Comparison Exercise for GNIP 5A New Device for Monthly Rainfall Sampling 5Perspectives - Preparation of a River Network 6Selected Publications in 2001 Related to GNIP 7International Symposium on Isotope Hydrology 8

Issue 16, November 2002

SPECIAL ISSUE ON THE GLOBAL NETWORK OF ISOTOPES IN PRECIPITATION

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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STATUS OF THE GNIP NETWORK IN 2001

The Global Network of Isotopesin Precipitation consisted of 153active stations in 2001. As canbe seen in the map above, ac-tive stations are classified as “IAEA” or “ National Network”(NN). The “IAEA” stations arethose where national institutesare performing the monthlysampling, compiling the mete-orological parameters and ship-ping samples to the IAEA for iso-tope analyses. The “ NationalNetworks” stations report re-sults to the IAEA, once a year,for their incorporation into theGNIP database.

In 2001, efforts made to con-tact hydrologists and meteoro-logical services permitted the re-activation of stations in New-Delhi (India), Santana (Domini-can Republic), Teheran (Iran)and Jakarta (Indonesia). In ad-dition, isotope and meteorologi-cal data from Alexandria and El

Cairo (Egypt), N’Dola (Zambia)and Perth-CSIRO (Australia)were received once again for theGNIP database. These stationswere previously active, but datawas not being sent to the IAEA.

New stations were opened in Dax(France), Algiers (Algeria), Haut-de-Sainte-Rose (La Réunion,France) and Quezon City (Phil-ippines). The national networksof Spain and China increased thenumber of active stations respec-tively by 15 and 9 units. As partof a research programme onMediterranean climate study (seepage 4), about 20 short-termstations were opened. It is ex-pected that, after data interpre-tation, some of these stations willbe selected for long-term obser-vation of the Mediterranean ba-sin.

A two-year delay is neede for

data analyses and quality con-trol and to allow data providerto publish their data if desired.Therefore, the 1999 data wererecently entered into the GNIP/ISOHIS database and are nowavailable for download throughthe Internet page. From the 153active stations, the data of 44stations are not yet in the data-base because part of the infor-mation is still missing.

The net increase of stable iso-tope data entered into the GNIPdatabase, 10 % from 1998 to1999, is very encouraging for thescientific and water managementcommunity but should not maskthe still significant disparity ingeographical distribution. Only36 stations are active in theSouthern hemisphere. Stationslocated on islands represent only10 % of the total number of sta-tions and are very difficult tomaintain.

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Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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In 2001, the new Website includ-ing data from ISOHIS and GNIPwas fully operational. Informa-tion on 1500 samples forhydrogeological projects andmore than 86000 data on pre-cipitation are actually availableon the Internet and can be eas-ily downloaded. For all statisticsreported in this article, GNIP in-formation is predominant theISOHIS/GNIP database.

In 2001, 840 persons were reg-istered to access the GNIP/ISOHIS Internet page withabout 100 new users per month.Most of the users come from de-veloped countries such as USA(30.3% of total registered us-ers), France (7.9%), Germany(7.4%), UK (5.9%), Canada(4.7%), Japan (4.3%), Australia(4.2%) as they have easy andfast access to Internet and useisotope techniques as a classi-cal hydrogeological tool.

Looking at the origin of the datarequested and analysis enteredinto the database (fig. 1 and 2),a similar regional distribution ofthe information can be ob-served. 41% of the downloadsare in European countries, 55%of them from Germany, Austria,France, Switzerland, Spain, UKand Portugal.

In general, the number of usersby region (fig. 3) is proportionalto the number of data availablein GNIP/ISOHIS. This meansthat, at a regional scale, datausers are also data providers. Anotable exception exists for theUSA that represents 30% of theregistered users and only 11%of the data available in GNIP.Graphics tools that could facili-tate a wider and easier use ofthe isotope data and highlighttheir importance in climate and

ORIGIN OF USERS

USA & Canada

Europe

East Asia & Pacific

West Asia

Africa Latin America

ORIGIN OF DATA REQUESTED

USA and Canada

Latin AmericaAfrica

East Asia & Pacific

West Asia

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NUMBER OF ANALYSES IN GNIP/ISOHIS

USA & Canada

Latin AmericaAfrica

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West Asia

EuropeFig. 1

Fig. 2

Fig. 3

WEB NEWS ON GNIP/ISOHIS

hydrogeological studies wereprepared in 2001.

Global and regional maps ofweighted mean annual andmonthly d18O, d2H and d-excess

in precipitation. The GNIP mapsand animation can be seen in theInternet at http://isohis.iaea.org.

Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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The 3rd meeting of the SSC tookplace in Geneva. This was thefirst time that the SSC meetingtook place at WMO Headquartersand it was a good opportunity toidentify links between the GNIPand other climate programmes ofWMO. Stronger WMO involve-ment in the management of GNIPwill give a boost to the pro-gramme and higher recognitionwith regard to the climate com-munity.

Keith Alverson, Executive Direc-tor of PAGES, provided a letteron behalf of the CLIVAR/PAGESIntersection working group ex-pressing strong support for thenetwork. CLIVAR/PAGES recog-nized the value of GNIP data forboth the paleo and climate dy-namics communities.

It was suggested that GNIP couldbe included in the GCOS networkto raise the profile of GNIP andfacilitate an increased application

of these data in climate and hy-drology research. GCOS consistsof several data networks relatedto atmospheric, oceanic, and ter-restrial observations for climatol-ogy. GCOS was established toensure that the observations nec-essary to address climate-relatedissues are defined, obtained andmade available to all potentialusers.

A large part of the meeting wasdevoted to discuss the design ofthe network and selection of corestations. The design should re-flect the needs of the climate andhydrology communities and besustainable on a long-term basis.

There are multiple factors for se-lecting the stations of a core net-work. The selection processshould take into account futuredevelopment of the database andbe based on the following crite-ria:

- availability of good quality me-teorological data (air tempera-ture, vapour pressure, precipi-tation)

- access to upper air elements(regional moisture, wind, airtemperature…)

- reasonable length and highquality of historical record (iso-tope and rain gauge)

- strategic location within thegeneral circulation

National networks will be askedto select the station(s) which canbe entered into the list of corestations.

All information about nationalnetworks or individual samplingstations not included in the GNIPprogramme is welcome. The con-tact person for the managementof the database is:Laurence Gourcy(L.Gourcy@iaea.org).

THE THIRD GNIP SCIENTIFIC STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING

COORDINATED RESEARCH PROJECT ON THE MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATE

A Coordinated Research Projecton “Isotopic composition of pre-cipitation in the Mediterraneanbasin in relation to air circula-tion patterns and climate” waslaunched in 2000. The CRP aimsto identify and to better definethe interactions between climaticconditions and isotopic compo-sition of precipitation in the Medi-terranean basin, in order to as-sess the relative contribution ofclimatic parameters to the over-all climatic change experiencedin the region, including precipi-tation decrease, and to apply theinformation to hydrogeologicalsystems, especially those thathave rapid response to rainevents. The scientists involved inthis research project first met inVienna in April 2001 to discuss

the national results obtained sofar, to describe the samplingmethodology and to prepare acoordinated sampling strategyaround the Mediterranean basin,in order to integrate data into aregional database as well as todiscuss the regional circulationof air masses behaviour.

The work to be conducted in thisCRP is expected to contribute tounderstanding of a) character-istics and variability of d-excessover the Mediterranean area; b)processes controlling mixing lay-ers; c) extreme precipitationevents: understanding their iso-topic labelling; and d) tritiumvariability in recent years in theMediterranean area.

For that purpose, a common pre-cipitation and vapour networkhas been established for a short-term period (about six months).During this period, about 100monthly-based precipitation-sampling stations, 30 daily orevent-based precipitation sam-pling and 12 bi-weekly water va-pour sampling stations will be ac-tive. Stable isotope (18O and 2H),tritium and chemistry will be ana-lysed. The results to be obtainedare expected to improve under-standing of the relation betweenisotopes and meteorological pa-rameters and accelerate the de-velopment of isotope techniquesin climate research.

Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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The 6th IAEA intercomparison of low-level tritium measurements in wa-ter (TRIC2000) was initiated in 2000and completed in October 2001. Thefull report is available on the Inter-net athttp://www.iaea.org/programmes/rial/pci/isotopehydrology/interlaboratory_comparisons.htm.

From the 23 laboratories that per-formed, in recent years, tritiumanalyses of GNIP samples, 22 par-ticipated in the TRIC2000. A set ofsix water samples was sent to the

To simplify the actual procedure formonthly precipitation sampling usingparaffin to avoid evaporation of rain-water stored in the rain gauge, the iso-tope hydrology laboratory designedand tested a new sampling device.

The plastic sampler is home-made andcan be built locally. A scheme of thesampler is given below.

The inflow of the first precipitationprevents further contact of watermoisture with the atmosphere. Forthat purpose, the inner tube has togo up to the bottom of the bottle andtherefore only the surface of the di-ameter of the tube is in contact withthe air. It is important that the tubeconnections at the lower part of thefunnel are well welded in order toavoid air exchange through the cap.The external tube is needed for pres-sure equilibration and it should be longenough to avoid atmospheric air ex-change. The system should allow themeasurement of the total rainamount.

A WMO standard rain gauge can alsobe installed close to the sampler sys-tem. The plastic container should beprotected from the sun and if possi-ble to overheat also. The size of thecontainer depends on the maximummonthly precipitation expected in theregion where the sampler is installed.

A NEW DEVICE FOR MONTHLY RAINFALL SAMPLING FOR GNIP

TRITIUM INTERLABORATORY COMPARISON FOR GNIP

For example, in 94% of cases a 10-litre container would be sufficient(considering a funnel of 20 cm diam-eter) for the GNIP stations.

The test performed in the IsotopeHydrology Laboratory in 2001/2002consisted of exposing outside, duringone year, the sampling device filledwith water and protected by a roofto avoid rain entry. A sample was takenfrom the container after 13, 60, 180and 330 days. Samples were analysedfor 18O and 2H content. There was nosignificant variation of stable isotopecontent within the first 60 days. Thetest included the hot summer period.

laboratories. Four laboratories usedgas proportional counting and oth-ers measured tritium by liquid scin-tillation counting. Two laboratoriesperformed direct counting withoutprior tritium enrichment of samples.The results reported are usually con-sistent with the reported uncertain-ties.

Reliability of precision can also bevisualized by looking at the uncer-tainty associated with each meas-urement. 30% of the laboratoriesreported a too high uncertainty (un-derestimating their precision) and 22

% a too low uncertainties (overesti-mating their precision). For almostall laboratories, the results obtainedare correct, however, the sensitivityof the measurement is sometimesnot sufficient for hydrological pur-poses. The tritium content in pre-cipitation varied in 1998 from 0.4 to41.4 TU with a yearly average of 8.7.The monthly variability for a givenstation ranges from 0.5 TU (South-ern hemisphere) to 24.7 TU (North-ern Hemisphere). For such a tritiumlevel, accuracy is quite poor for fourGNIP laboratories.

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Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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While the scope of river basin hy-drological research and monitor-ing has expanded in recent years,hydrological processes in river ba-sins, particularly at the large scale,have remained difficult to quan-tify using conventional physical ap-proaches alone.

The stable isotopes are particularlyuseful for assessing relative con-tributions of flow derived fromuniquely labelled geographicalsources or distributed componentssuch as direct precipitation runoff,shallow and deep groundwater,and surface waters including lakesand wetlands. Contributions areexpected to proportionately differin each system depending on thephysical setting of the drainagebasin as well as climatic param-eters. Isotopic composition of dis-charge in river waters will reflectthe cumulative influence of hydro-logical processes from precipita-tion to discharge, including theinfluence of snow, melting glaciers,dams, lakes, karst terrain, altitude,arid zone evaporation, snow meltevents, and tributaries. In particu-lar, the rate and amplitude of sea-sonal isotope variations in largeriver basins is expected to be agood indicator of effective ground-water reservoir volumes and inter-action. In this respect, sizeable,well-connected groundwater sys-tems will tend to dampen short-term variability in river discharge.

The radioactive isotope, tritium(3H), incorporated in the watermolecule, has also proven to bean effective tracer for river basinstudies. By comparative analysiswith precipitation data from GNIP,historical tritium records havebeen helpful in resolving charac-teristics of river basins, includingaverage residence time of waterwithin the basin, and resolution insome cases has been substantiallyimproved by use of combined 3H-

3He methods and chlorofluorocar-bons (CFCs).

The newly initiated CoordinatedResearch Project (2002-2005) on“Isotope Tracing of HydrologicalProcesses in Large River Basins”will provide a comprehensive andcoordinated approach to study hy-drological processes in large riverbasins. The study will focus onanalysis of discharge records inriver basins located in a variety ofhydroclimatic regions. Overall, theCRP is expected to providegroundwork and a scientific ration-ale for development of an opera-tional “Global Network of Iso-topes in Rivers” (GNIR) to en-hance understanding of the watercycle of river basins and to assessimpacts of environmental and cli-matic changes on the water cy-cle.

Currently, the GNIP network is theonly global isotope database avail-able for large-scale hydrologic andclimatic research and model vali-dation. Monitoring of the isotopecomposition of discharge in largerivers is another potentially pow-erful hydrologic and climatic indi-cator that has to date only beensystematically monitored in a fewareas. Comparison of GNIP dataand the isotopic composition of liq-uid outputs from a network oflarge rivers is expected to contrib-ute significant additional informa-tion on the basin-integrated hydro-logical processes (evaporation,transpiration, runoff, storage,groundwater exchange etc.). Thecomplimentary value of monitor-ing both discharge and precipita-tion is well known from physicalstudies of basin hydrology, andhence has remained a priority ofnational hydroclimate monitoringnetworks around the world. In ananalogous way, the concurrentcollection of precipitation and dis-charge for isotope composition is

expected to be of particular valuefor isotope-based hydrologic re-search at the large scale, and couldpotentially open new doors andnew opportunities for understand-ing the water cycle in large basins.

The first RCM of IAEA CoordinatedResearch Project on Isotope Trac-ing of Hydrological Processes inLarge River Basins (2002-2005)was held in Vienna during 13-16May 2002. The meeting involvedresearch groups from 17 countrieswho met to discuss and developa conceptual framework andmethodology for the new largeriver basin programme which in-volves individual studies on all in-habited continents, spanning awide range of hydrological and cli-matic regimes. The group will un-dertake the task to build and testa set of transferable isotope tech-niques that will help to demon-strate the scientific rationale for aglobal river isotope monitoring sys-tem. Although the groups havewide-ranging interests rangingfrom water budget studies, hydro-logic change, water quality, salin-ity, pollution tracing and monitor-ing of climate changes and humandevelopment impacts, the com-mon intersection of the groups’ in-terest is the development ofisotopes techniques for character-izing water balance processes us-ing d18O and d2H contained in thewater molecule. While the next co-ordination meeting is planned forthe 1st quarter of 2004, the grouphas made tentative plans to gatherfor a special session in Vienna dur-ing the 40th Anniversary IsotopeHydrology Meeting in May 2003.

PERSPECTIVES - PREPARATION OF A RIVER NETWORK

Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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Anderson, W.T., Bernasconi, S.M.,McKenzie, J.A., Saurer, M., andSchweingruber, F. 2001. Modelevaluation for reconstructing theoxygen isotopic composition inprecipitation from tree ring cellu-lose over the last century. Chemi-cal Geology, 182 (2-4), 121-137.

Bajjali, W., Abu-Jaber, N., 2001:Climatological signals of thepaleogroundwater in Jordan. Jour-nal of Hydrology, 243,133-147.

Bergonzini, L., Gibert, E., Winckel,A., Merdaci, O., 2001. Water andisotopic (18O and 2H) budget ofLake Massoko, Tanzania. Quanti-fication of exchange between Lakeand groundwater. C.R. Académiedes Sciences, Earth and PlanetarySciences, 333: 617-623.

Celle-Jeanton, H., Travi, Y., andBlavoux, B. 2001. Isotopic typol-ogy of the precipitation in theWestern Mediterranean region atthree different time scales. Geo-physical Research Letter, 28:1215-1218.

Celle-Jeanton, H., Zouari, K., Travi,Y., Daoud, A. 2001. Isotopic char-acterisation of the precipitation inTunisia. Variations of the stableisotope compositions of rainfallevents related to the origin of airmasses. C.R. Académie des Sci-ences, Earth and Planetary Sci-ences, 333: 625-631.

Ferronsky, W.I., Polyakov, V.A.,Lobov, A.L. and Batov, V.I. 2001.Isotope study of impact of climaticchanges on hydrological cycle inCentral Asia and Caspian arid re-gion. IAEA TecDoc 1207, 59-76.

Gibson, J.J. 2001. Forest-tundrawater balance signals traced byisotopic enrichment in lakes. Jour-nal of Hydrology, 251, 1-13.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS IN 2001 RELATED TO GNIP

Robertson, I., Waterhouse, J.S.,Barker, A.C., Carter, A.H.C., andSwitsur, V.R. 2001. Oxygen isotoperatios of oak in east England: im-plications for reconstructing theisotopic composition of precipita-tion. Earth and Planetary ScienceLetters, 191, 21-31.

Saighi, O., Michelot, J.L., and Filly,A. 2001. Isotopic characteristics ofmeteoric water and groundwaterin Ahaggar Massif (Central Sa-hara). IAEA-TECDOC 1207, 7-25.

Suzuki, K. and Endo, Y. 2001. Oxy-gen isotopic composition of win-ter precipitation in central Japan.Journal of Geophysical Research,106(D), 7243-7249.

Tian, L., Masson-Delmotte, V.,Stievenard, M., Yao, T., Jouzel, J.,2001. Tibetan Plateau summermonsoon northward extent re-vealed by measurements of waterstable isotopes. Journal of Geo-physical Research, 106(D22),28081-28088.

Werner, M., Heimann, M.,Hoffmann, G. 2001. Isotopic com-position and origin of polar pre-cipitation in present and glacial cli-mate simulations. Tellus, 53B, 53-71.

Wright, W.E., Comrie, A.C., Leavitt,S.W., Cazavos, T., and Eastoe, C.2001. Monsoonal Moisture SourcesRevealed Using Temperature, Pre-cipitation, and Precipitation StableIsotope Time series. GeophysicalResearch Letters, 28(5), 787-790.

Zuber, A., Michalczyk, Z., andMaloszewski, P. 2001. Great tritiumage explain the occurrence ofgood-quality groundwater in aphreatic aquifer of an urban area,Lublin, Poland. Hydrogeology Jour-nal, 9(5), 451-460.

Gonfiantini, R., Roche, M.-A.,Olivry, J.-C., Fontes, J.-C., andZuppi, G.M. 2001. The altitude ef-fect on the isotopic compositionof tropical rains. Chemical Geol-ogy, 181, 147-167.

Gros, V., Bräunlich, M.,Röckmann,T.,Jöckel, P., Bergamaschi, P.,Brenninkmeijer, C.A.M., Rom,W.,Kutschera, W., Kaiser, A., Secheel,H.E., Mandal, M., van der Plicht, J.and Possnert, G. 2001. Detailedanalysis of the isotopic composi-tion of CO and characterization ofthe air masses arriving at MountSonnblick. Journal of GeophysicalResearch, 106(D), 3179-3193.

Hoffmann, G., Jouzel, J., andJohnsen, S. 2001. Deuterium ex-cess record from central Greenlandover the last millennium: Hints ofa North Atlantic signal during theLittle Ice Age. Journal of Geophysi-cal Research, 106, 14265-14274.

Holdsworth, G. 2001. Calibrationchanges in the isotopic thermom-eter for snow according to differ-ent climatic states. GeophysicalResearch Letters, 28, 2625-2628.

Johnson, D.G., Jucks, K.W., Traub,W.A. and Chance, K.V. 2001. Iso-topic composition of stratosphericwahara). IAEA-TECDOC 1207, 7-25.

Johnson, D.G., Jucks, K.W., Traub,W.A. and Chance, K.V. 2001. Iso-topic composition of stratosphericwater vapor: Implications fortransport. Journal of GeophysicalResearch, 106(D), 12219-12226.

Kendall C., and Coplen, T.B. 2001.Distribution of oxygen-18 and deu-terium in river waters across theUnited States. Hydrological Proc-esses, 15, 1363-1393.

Water & Environment News, Issue 16, November 2002

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Water & Environment News, Isotope Hydrology Section, International Atomic EnergyAgency, Wagramer Strasse 5, P.O.Box 100, A-1400, Vienna, Austria.

Printed by IAEA in Vienna, November 2002

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The 40th Anniversary Inter-national Symposium on Iso-tope Hydrology and Inte-grated Water Resources Man-agement will be held 19-23May 2003 in Vienna, Austria!

1. INTRODUCTION

Scarcity of freshwater, deg-radation of its quality, and in-creasing demand has moti-vated ongoing concern in theinternational community formore effective utilization offreshwater resources. TheIAEA’s symposia on the useof isotope techniques in wa-ter resources developmentand management have be-come a recurrent event heldevery four years. They haveprovided an international fo-rum for a comprehensive re-view of the present state-of-the-art and recent advancesmade in this specific field aswell as a basis for delineationof further research and de-velopment needs. The year2003 marks the 40th anniver-sary of the first IAEA waterresources symposium. In-creasing use of isotope tech-niques over the past four dec-ades, in part due to effortsof IAEA, has enhanced avail-ability and effective use ofisotopes to address water re-sources management issues.On this occasion, the Sympo-sium will address the majorthemes of the meeting byfeaturing invited reviews fromboth pioneering scientists andcontemporary experts.

2. AUDIENCE AND TOPICS

The Symposium will cover amulti-disciplinary spectrum ofresearch and applications ofisotope techniques. The par-ticipation of isotope special-ists, hydrologists,hydrogeologist, geochemists,environmental scientists andwater managers is welcomed.The Organizers further en-courage the participation andcontribution of graduate stu-dents in these fields. TheIAEA welcomes high-qualitycontributions that demon-strate the application of iso-topes as an integrated partof water resources scienceand management practices,particularly in the followingareas:.

-Water cycle processes in theatmosphere and hydro-sphere, including surface wa-ter, groundwater, and water-shed-based studies.-Age dating of younggroundwaters-Water, carbon and nutrientcycling processes at the land-ocean-atmosphere interface-Recent advances in analyti-cal techniques for isotope hy-drology-Field applications of isotopesin groundwater or surfacewater resources manage-ment.

INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON ISOTOPE HYDROLOGY - First Announcement and Call for Papers

3. PAPERS AND POSTERS

Concise papers on issues fall-ing within the topics outlinedin Section 2 above may besubmitted as contributions tothe Symposium. All papers,apart from invited review pa-pers, must present originalwork; they should not havebeen published elsewhere.

Persons who wish to presenta paper or poster at the Sym-posium must submit a twopage synopsis (in English) to-gether with the completedForm for Submission of a Pa-per (Form B), and the Partici-pation Form (Form A) to thecompetent national authorityfor official transmission to theIAEA. The two page synop-sis must be sent electronicallyto the IAEA Scientific Secre-tariat, e-mail:confisohis@iaea.org. Authorsare urged to make use of theExtended Synopsis Templatein Word 2000 and its user in-structions available on theSymposium webpage. Thespecifications and instruc-tions for preparing the syn-opsis are given there.

The two page synopsis will beconsidered by the Pro-gramme Committee only ifthe Participation Form A andPaper Submission Form Bhave been received by theIAEA through the official gov-ernmental channels.

The working language of themeeting will be English. Allcommunications, synopses,abstracts and papers must besent to the Agency in Eng-lish.

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