TEHRAN – The first national festival of water and hydraulics inventions will be held at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad on January 17-18, 2021.

With the support of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, the event aims at identifying innovators in this field to enter the industry.

This festival will be held concurrent with the 19th National Hydraulic Conference with the aim of commercializing the top inventions in the water industry and awarding the first three top projects.

The event, supported by the National Elites Foundation and the specialized working group on water, drought, soil erosion, and environment of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, is organized by the Iranian Hydraulic Association.

Technology dealing with environmental issues

In September, Sourena Sattari, the vice president for science and technology, told the Tehran Times that the knowledge-based firms have so far been developing advanced technologies to address different environmental issues, such as wastewater treatment, water purification, fighting sand and dust storms, alternative cultivation patterns, etc.

Hi-tech tackling environmental issues highly depend on environmental economics which is a sub-category of economics concerned with environmental issues. Particular issues include the costs and benefits of alternative environmental policies to deal with air pollution, water quality, toxic substances, solid waste, and global warming, he suggested.

Environmental economics emphasizes strong sustainability and rejects the proposition that human-made (physical) capital can substitute for natural capital, he added.

“We can never have an environment-based economy if we do not price environmental problems, and the government must enter to tackle any issues, but when there is an economic solution, people will engage and the issue is solved sustainably.

For example, to control a sand and dust storm hotspot, if the government enters, it can solve the problem by mulching for a while, but if businesses enter, an economic aspect will be formed and they can generate revenue and counter the environmental problems.”

FB/MG