One of the world leading experts in hydrology, Dr. Rafael L. Bras said "the Project is an ambitious multipurpose project."
Dr. Rafael L. Bras, one of the world leading experts in hydrology, estimated the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project of Korea as the very ambitious project. Professor Bras expressed his interest in the project with saying like that in the interview with our media during a lecture of invited erudite scholars on July 9th, 2010.
Prof. Bras had been longtime in MIT as professor and served as a dean of The Henry Samueli School of Engineering at University of California, Irvine. On July 15, 2010, Bras was named provost of the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Prior to his speech, Prof. Bras had a meeting with YOON Jeong-Bang, PARK Hee-Gyeong (professors of KAIST) and PARK Jae-Yeong (Head of Tech Support Center, K-Water) in main conference room of Tech Support Center of K-Water Corporation. At that place Prof. Bras watched short video clip introducing the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project and got briefing details on the project. The followings are the short contents of interview with him.
As a hydrologist, please tell us your candid opinion how you look this project.
The key point of waterway restoration lies on the simultaneous consideration for quantity and quality. And Geological, geographical, environmental, social, economic impact caused by it also have to be dealt with. The Four Major Rivers Restoration Project is a considerably huge and grand national project. It is very ambitious one. Hopefully it would meet with good result.
The seriousness of climate change is the world's common recognition. Can you estimate the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project of Korea as an adequate countermeasure for that?
The issues of climate change and green growth around the world is obvious. At the point of view that the project is to prepare for the water shortage and climate change, if so, the project is worthy of positive evaluation. However, evaluating the project itself without thorough scrutiny is a careful thing for me yet.
If there is something to be supplemented, please tell us without any reserve.
In Korea, like KAIST, K-Water Corporation and so on, there are excellent institutes and systems that can support with technical advice on the project. I expect you make a successful consequence under collaboration. If you need technical advice concerned with my field, I can you a hand in case. The project is very ambitious and multipurpose one being carried out from diverse points of view. I and our university have not a few interests in that.
Subsequently at the auditorium of Water Management Center, 4th floor on Hall of Information in K-Water, Professor Bras made a lecture about 'the Systemization found in complexity and non-linear formation of global hydrologic flow and circulation - model development and its application'. The main contents of the lecture was that hydrological flow must be organized in diverse view points and considered deliberately; because atmosphere, lay of the land, soil, climate, ecosystem and plants are correlated organically. That was very suggestive to our project.
