CIGR Newsletter No 53

++ CIGR NEWS ++ CIGR NEWS ++ CIGR NEWS ++

NEWS FROM THE PRESIDIUM

Report of the XIV Memorial CIGR World Congress

The XIV CIGR World Congress held on November 28 December 1, 2000 at the University of Tsukuba in Tsukubab Science City, Japan was a special scientific conference in memory of the 70th Anniversary of CIGR and for the turn of the new century. It was the first CIGR World Congress held in Asia and it was attended by 406 participants with 24 accompanying persons. On behalf of the Organising Committee, I would like to extend my deep gratitude to the participants of the congress.

The congress was preceded by the Club of Bologna meeting and tours on November 26-27 co-sponsored by CIGR. In the meeting of the Club of Bologna world farm mechanisation was discussed. The Presidium meeting was held on November 25. Following this meeting, the Executive Board meeting and the Technical Board meeting of CIGR were held on November 27 where plans of activities and in world-wide scale were discussed and formulated. A technical tour was arranged on November 28 for visiting famous national research institutions in Tsukuba ended up with a welcome reception. Section Board meetings and Working Groups meetings were organised in-between. The Editorial Board meeting of the CIGR Handbook was held on November 30.

The congress was started with the Opening Session on November 29. Welcome Addresses and congratulations were extended by the Congress Organization Committee chairman O. Kitani, the President of the Science Council of Japan Prof. H. Yoshikawa, who is also president of the International Council for Science (ICSU), CIGR President B. Stout, and other key organizers along with a message from Prime Minister Y. Mori of Japan.

The Plenary keynote speeches titled as "Increasing Food Production and Protecting Resources" by Mr. L. Clarke, FAO, and "The 21st Century expectations in IT: What to expect, what are the limits" by Prof. N. Sigrimis, who was elected as the founding Chairman of the new added Section VII: Information Systems. Three other Special Sessions concerned with paddy field agriculture, life support system, and informatics were held in the afternoon.

On November 30 and December 1 Oral and Poster Sessions were organised where more than 300 papers were presented. Selected papers were published in the Proceedings on CD-ROM which is available at the General Secretariat in Bonn (email: CIGR@uni-bonn.de) at a fixed price. The General Assembly was held in the afternoon and elected Prof. A. Munack as the new Incoming President of CIGR. Prof. H. Bartali made a presidential address as President for 2001-2002. In the General Assembly the necessary revision of the statutes was approved. The World Congress 2006 was decided to be held in Bonn, Germany. Moreover, another big CIGR conference was scheduled in China in 2004. A new CIGR Award System was approved and merit awards were presented to T. Friedrich, Da-Wen Sun and T. Onodera for their excellent roles in their world-wide activities. Honorary titles where given to O. Kitani, P. Abeels and R. Hegg for their great contribution to the CIGR activities.

The banquet was held in the evening at Tsukuba Daiichi Hotel. In the ceremony President Stout awarded the following persons with the respective prices. Armand Blanc Prize: Nele De Belie, Gunnar Brehme and Ali Musa Elhassan. E-Journal Prize: S. Oshita et al. (Y. Seo, Y. Kawagoe and R. Ayala), A. Becerra et al. (L.F. Iribarne, A. Bosch, and J.R. Diaz). Some industry prizes were also awarded as follows. UNACOMA Prize: L. Clarke, JAFMMA Prize: J. Ortiz-Canavate, KAMIC Prize: Chang-Joo Chung, AMA-Kishida Prize: Abdullah Kamaruddin.

A special panel meeting on IT was organized with the cooperation of the Japan Society of Agricultural Informatics (JSAI) on December 1. In the Memorial Ceremony for the 70th Anniversary of CIGR, Prof. P. Abeels delivered the special speech titled "CIGR"s Past Looks Towards the Future". Following his speech, titles of Fellow of CIGR were presented to P. Abeels, J. De Baerdemaeker, E. Berge, J. Daelemans, H. Heege, G. Pellizzi, Z. Sibalszky, and G. Singh fortheir long time adnd continous contribution to CIGR. The congress was closed with the anticipation to the next World Congress in 2002 in Chicago.

A post congress tour was arranged to visit the Kasumigaura Lake and Nikko on December 2-3. The weather was very good throughout the congress period.

Although CIGR has played the primary role, the congress was supported by many organisations and volunteers. Many regional societies such as AAAE, ALIA, ASAE, EurAgEng and SEASAE cosponsored the congress activities. As the hosting organisation, the Science Council of Japan and the Japan Association of the International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (JAICAE) and its eleven member societies as well as the University of Tsukuba strongly supported and intensively assisted the congress. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to these organisations and individuals, and I am looking forward to seeing you in the next World Congress in 2002 in Chicago, USA.

Osamu Kitani

Chairman, Organizing Committee of the

XIV Memorial CIGR World Congress

Composition of the CIGR Boards 2001-2002

Following the elections of the CIGR General Assembly in Tsukuba on 30 November 2000

Presidium

President Prof. El Houssine Bartali (Morocco)

Incoming President Prof. Axel Munack (Germany)

Past President Prof. Bill Stout (USA)

Secretary-Genera1 Prof. Peter Schulze Lammers (Germany)

Executive Board

Yoshisuke Kishida, ASAE

Prof. Makoto Hoki, AAAE

Prof. Ortiz Canavate, EurAgEng

Prof. Irelniza de Alencar N??s, ALIA

Dr. Nuhu Hatibu, SEASAE

Prof. Osamu Kitani, Japan

Prof. Gao Yuanen, China

Jean Claude Souty, France

Co-opted:

Prof. Pierre Abeels,

Prof. Jan Daelemans

Auditing: P. Abeels (BE), Y. Seo (JP), F. Bakker-Arkema (US)

Composition of the seven Section Boards

Sections

I

II

III

Chair

Pereira S.L. (PT)

Voermans J. (NL)

Bourarach E.H. (MA)

Vice Chair

Musy A. (CH)

Tantau H.-J. (DE)

Marchenko O.S. (RU)

Secretary

Brasa Ramos A. (ES)

Pedersen S. (DK)

Weise G. (DE)

Members

Sato Y. (JP)

Greppi M. (IT)
Fulajtar E. (SK)
Hann M. (UK)
Cai Lingen (CN)
Erbach D. (US)

Somma D. (ARG)

Alves Soares A. (BR)

Taylor P. (US)

De Wrachien D. (EurAgEng)*

Ragab R. (ICID-Water)*

Vidal A. (ICID-Land)*

Tarjuelo J. (WG-WMIS)*

Jaarsma C.F. (PIARC)*

Loudon T. (NOWRA)*

Rubio J.L.(ESSC)*

Kuczynski T. (PL)

Jacobson L. (US)

De Alencar N??s I. (BR)

Flaba J. (BE)

Mennella V. (IT)

Banhazi T. (AUS)

Meneses J. (PT)

Sällvik K. (SE)

Gates R. (USA)

Faust D. (HU)

Takao H. (JP)

Sundell B. (SE)

Sutton D.K. (UK)

Snobar B.A. (JO)

Lara-Lopez A. (MX)

Schueller J. (US)

Salokhe V.M. (TH)

Mantovani E. (BR)

Jasinski B. (PL)

IV

V

VI

VII

Ramdani A. (MA)

Luoma T. (FI)

Ruiz-Altisent M. (ES)

Sigrimis N. (GR)

Kamaruddin A. (ID)

Hilmersen A. (NO)

Yuanen Gao (CN)

Hegg R. (US)

Kämper (DE)

Luder W. (CH)

Bakker-Arkema F. (US)

Omasa K. (JP)

De Francisco A. (ES)

Yamazaki M. (JP)

Mazzetto F. (IT)

Papadakis G. (GR)

Blatin D. (FR)

Piechocki J. (PL)

Akdeniz C. (TR)

Gemtos T. (GR)

Irps H. (GER)

Heier S. (GER)

Piccarolo P. (IT)

Tadeusz J. (PL)

Szeles G. (HU)

Goense D. (NL)

Weiershäuser L. (DE)

Takigawa T. (JP)

Singh G. (TH)

Soerensen C. (DK)

Maier D. (US)

Regner S. (SE)

Sei Ichi Oshita (JP)

Silva J. (BR)

Soponronnarit S. (TH)

Kapseu C. (CM)

Menesatti P. (IT)

Grochowicz J. (PL)

Famil Moumen R. (IR)

O'Para L. (NZ)

Nicolai B. (BE)

Geyer M. (GER)

Sun D.W. (IE)

Turner L. (US)

Martin-Clouaire R. (F)

Da Silva A.-C. (BR)

Abou-Hadid A.F. (EP)

Xiong F.L. (CN)

van Straten G (NL)

Jahns G. (GER)

Sindir K. (TR)

Molto H. (ES)

Reid F. (US)

De Baerdemaeker J. (BE)

Murase H. (JP)

Hashimoto Y. (JP) (Hon Chair)

* Liaison Members

CIGR Commitment to World Agriculture

Great efforts have been made to develop CIGR activities during the last years, while at the same time streamlining its administrative and working arrangements at the successive locations of its General Secretariat. I would like to thank all Past Presidents of CIGR for the excellent work and contributions they have made during their respective terms, namely those who have shaped CIGR into the global organisation that it is: Prof. Pellizzi, Prof. Berge, Prof. Kitani and Prof. Stout, as well as our former Secretary General, Prof. Daelemans, and the present Secretary General, Prof. Schulze Lammers.

Challenges ahead

CIGR needs to address the ever important and vital global issue of food security for people. I am aware of the numerous challenges ahead of us. World agriculture is facing a variety of difficulties mainly in developing countries. Fighting drought, flooding, salinity and desertification, ensuring environment protection, bio diversity and adequate energy input, reducing post harvest loss and ensuring better food processing for an increased added value of agricultural products constitute some of these challenges. CIGR has therefore a large potential of support to give regarding the issues of rural and agricultural development. To achieve this, I believe in the contribution of all CIGR family members.

CIGR Technical Sections

CIGR’s accomplishments are assessed mainly through the work of its Technical Sections and Working Groups. Let Cme thank their respective chairs for their continuous voluntary commitment and contributions to the work of the Commission. CIGR President Prof. Stout has insisted on the need for,&rnbsp;mission statement agnd program of activities mfor eaich section. I definitely seek the collaboration of everybody for further improvements in the future.

CIGR has just added a new Technical Section to its structure. In this way, it will be able to adequately cover the important topic of information systems and use this potential to improve production and processing of agricultural products.

Scheduled activities

The two coming years are another milestone period for CIGR with the joint XVth International CIGR and ASAE congress to be held in July 2002, in Chicago, USA. Other important meetings ahead are the 2004 international conference on agricultural engineering in China and the XVI International CIGR Congress in Bonn, Germany, in 2006. Regional Associations of CIGR will be holding their annual or biannual international meetings and conferences. Through its Technical Sections, CIGR will also be organising or cosponsoring a variety of seminars and workshops related to different aspects of agricultural engineering.

I am sure that all CIGR National Committees and Regional Associations, Technical Sections and Working Groups are currently busy preparing these events by way of papers and contributions to the various technical sessions and meetings to be held.

Developing CIGR activities

While we cannot deny the success CIGR has achieved globally, gaps continue to remain between developed and developing countries. There is a great potential to bridge these gaps for mutual and common benefit. It is here that CIGR, with its current more representative and streamlined organisation structure is well placed to take further positive steps. Such steps will promote greater international co-operation to meet the challenges ahead as we move on to the 21st century.

The joint CIGR-FAO online group discussion further strengthens our existing ties with FAO with prospects for greater collaboration in the future. Efforts are constantly made to improve CIGR’s website. I would like to recommend that you visit it more frequently in thet future at www.ucd.ie/cigr/.

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The electronic journal of CIGR is a peer-reviewed journal of scientific research and development. Its address is www.agen.tamu.edu/cigr/. This initiative introduced by CIGR in 1999 is to be developed. CIGR welcomes contributions from individuals and national associations.

The CIGR newsletter and bulletin printed in English and French are released for the purpose of sharing and disseminating information and experiences of common interest. I would like to urge CIGR members to fully avail themselves of this opportunity to contribute news or views.

The CIGR handbook is a valuable tool for training and research institutions particularly in developing countries. CIGR is grateful to all the persons and organisations who offered copies of this handbook to libraries in developing countries. A second edition is under consideration. CIGR is taking into account the requirement to orientate it to the needs of professional and extension users.

CIGR is aiming at a better dissemination of its activities into a larger area of the world and therefore to attract new national or regional associations. Nine national associations have joined CIGR during the last two years. These are: Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Czech Republic, Iran, Korea, Mexico, Philippines and Turkey. There is also a new regional association: the Euro-Asian Regional Association of agricultural engineering. CIGR welcomes these new members and will value their input. However, we still need particularly to encourage French speaking Africa and Arab countries to join our Commission. To make a membership more attractive to those countries, CIGR will examine the possibility of translating the CIGR handbook into French, the Newsletter of CIGR into Arabic and the various CIGR leaflets into both of these languages. For this, it will seek support from the French national committee of CIGR, the Francophone University Agency, and sponsorship from the Arab Organisation for Agricultural Development.

An outlook to future directions

Providing food security to all people through increased food productivity will be a major task of the world community in the next 20 years and beyond. There is a pressing need to provide enough food for an additional population of 3 billion people by 2050. The principal tasks will be to bridge the existing gap between yield potential and the actual yields achieved. Also, priority will need to be given to the development and application of technologies for less favourable ecosystems and crops. It will be imperative to maintain agricultural sustainability and to adopt measures to make existing technologies more acceptable to farmers.

CIGR will remain sensitive to these issues and will strive to address them proactively just as in the past. With limited resources, it must necessarily adopt a focused approach and develop strategic partnerships. This is demonstrated throughout recent efforts in pursuing CIGR electronic publications, a new edition of the Handbook, online group discussions, the new Technical Section on information technology, and the Working Groups. CIGR will also have to strengthen its international collaboration and develop the involvement of industrial and entrepreneurial sectors in its tasks. The activities of the Technical Sections and their Working Groups and their quality outputs must remain our strength in harnessing science and technology to optimum levels to achieve our goals.

CIGR has therefore many targets to fulfil its mission of service to its members. I will be grateful to all active members of the Commission to continue the excellent work and unstinting help that they give us. It is only through these efforts that we can continue to improve the effectiveness of our activities. I am looking forward to a very productive work with our Secretary General Prof. Schulze Lammers and his staff in Bonn and with the Presidium members Prof. Stout and Prof. Munack. I will also be grateful to Prof. Kitani for his continuous advice after his term of Past President. I renew our sincere gratitude to the German Ministry of Agriculture for all the kind help it keeps providing the General Secretariat of CIGR in Bonn with. Let us work together in pursuing our global mission and look forward to another successful joint CIGR ASAE Congress in the US in 2002.

El Houssine Bartali

CIGR President 2001-2002

THE CURRENT STATUS OF CIGR

DECEMBER 31, 2000

The International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (CIGR) is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its founding this year. In 1994, under the leadership of President Pellizzi (Italy), CIGR embarked on a new plan to serve as a global network for agricultural engineers around the world. The global network was enhanced by Presidents Berge (Norway) and Kitani (Japan). The past two years under my presidency, the CIGR global network has continued to develop. We have seen a number of exciting new developments, a growing interest in CIGR activities, and many new member countries. Let’s review some of the key developmCenGts of the past two years.

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Handbook

The CIGR Handbook of Agricultural Engineering was published by ASAE in March of 1999 under the very capable leadership of Dr. Osamu Kitani (Japan), Editor-in-Chief. This 2400-page series of five volumes (also available on a single CD) is a major contribution to world literature on agricultural engineering. It was authored by 110 specialists from around the world. To purchase a set of handbooks or a CD, contact martin@asae.org

Electronic Journal

Agricultural Engineering International: The CIGR Journal of Scientific Research and Development, a new peer reviewed electronic journal, was initiated in 1999 with Dr. George Sabbagh (USA) as the first Editor-in-Chief. Seven technical articles and two invited overview papers were published in Volume I. Dr. Rosana Moreira (USA) is the current Editor-in-Chief. Ten technical articles and four invited overview papers were published in Volume II, and a large number of manuscripts are currently being reviewed. There is no charge to read papers or publish in this journal. Check the e-journal website for more information or to read or print these papers, www.agen.tamu.edu/cigr/.

CIGR/FAO Global Email Network

This series of list-serves organised by subject matter (corresponding to the CIGR sections) allows agricultural engineers from around the world to exchange information. Subscription is free. Contact the CIGR General Secretariat at CIGR@uni-bonn.de for details on how to subscribe. Thanks to Dr. Theodor Friedrich of FAO for setting up and managing these list-serves.

Developments in the Sections

The sections are the main units that co-ordinate the technical and professional work of CIGR. CIGR now has seven technical sections:

Land and water engineering Chair, Professor Luis Pereira, Portugal

Farm buildings, equipment, structures, and environment Chair, Ir. Jan Voermans, The Netherlands

Equipment engineering for plant production Chair, Professor El Hassan Bourarach, Morocco

Rural electricity and other energy sources Chair, Professor Abdellahn Ramdani, Morocco

Management, ergonomics, and systems engineering Chair, Professor Tarmo Luoma, Finland

Processing Chair, Margarita Ruiz-Altisent, Spain

Information systems Chair, Professor Nick Sigrimis, Greece

Section VII, Information Systems, was approved at the World Congress in Tsukuba City, Japan, in November 2000. The mission of Section VII is to advance the use of information systems for lowering the production costs, improving value-added processing, and maintaining the quality of agricultural products. Technologies that may be included within the scope of Section VII include:

This new section will work closely with the other CIGR sections and with information technology associations around the world.

In order to improve the effectiveness of all the CIGR sections, a planning document has been drafted by the chairs of each section. This document includes:

These section-planning documents will be updated periodically as the profession of agricultural engineering evolves and will serve as a guide for strengthening the sections. The final drafts may be seen on the CIGR website at www.ucd.ie/cigr/.

Working Groups (WG)

CIGR has a number of working groups to focus on specific topics or to deal with short-term issues. Many of these WG’s collaborate with EurAgEng special interest groups (SIG) or other agencies sharing mutual interests.

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Several WG’s have been particulanrly activee the past two years. WG-1 (SIG 12) has worked diligently unsder the leadership of Pierluigi Febo (Italy) to produce a comprehensive publication entitled, The University Structure and Curricula on Agricultural Engineering. Thanks tto Progfessor Febo and to Dr. Friedrich of FAO for publishing this document in book form and on a compact disk.

WG-13, Climatization of Animal Houses, under the leadership of Krister Sällvik (Sweden), and WG-14, Cattle Housing, under the leadership of Joseph Flaba (Belgium), have continued their active programs.

WG-18, Information Systems, under the leadership of Richard Hegg (USA) and Nick Sigrimis (Greece) was set up to consider whether or not a section dealing with information systems should be initiated. The conclusion of their work is the formation of Section VII.

Club of Bologna

The Club of Bologna is a mechanization think tank comprised of nearly 100 mechanization specialists from around the world sponsored by the Italian Unione Nazionale Construttori Macchine Agricole (UNACOMA). Professor Giuseppe Pellizzi (Italy) has been a leader in the club since its formation. It meets once a year in Bologna in conjunction with the Italian Machinery Show (EIMA). This year two additional meetings of the club were held—one in Fortaleza, Brazil, and the other in Tsukuba City, Japan. Proceedings ofa the club mgeetings are available from giuseppe.pellizzi@unimi.it.

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Euro-Asian Regional Association

In April 2000, representatives from several former Soviet Republics met during the Conference on Ecology and Agricultural Machinery in Saint Petersburg, Russia. They agreed to form the Euro-Asian Regional Association of Agricultural Engineering (EAAAE) of CIGR that will operate using Russian language. Charter members are Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine. For further information contact Oleg Merchenko (Russia) at oleg072000@mail.ru.

Section VII Information Systems

As mentioned earlier, CIGR has recently formed a new section to deal with information systems. The new section will work closely with existing sections and with information technology associations around the world. Thanks to Richard Hegg (USA) and Nick Sigrimis (Greece) for taking the lead in drafting the mission statement, scope, objectives, and work plan for Section VII. For further information, contact n.sigrimis@computer.org.

New Member Associations

Because of improved member services such as the handbook, e-journal, and global email network, CIGR is growing. The following national associations have joined in the past two years:

Australia, Korea, Bangladesh, Mexico, Canada, Philippines, Czech Republic, Turkey and Iran

The new Euro-Asian Regional Association also brings Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine into membership with the potential of adding many other Russian-speaking countries in the future.

Transfer of General Secretariat to Bonn

Peter Schulze Lammers (Germany) assumed the position of Secretary-General effective March 1998 replacing Jan Daelemans (Belgium) who retired. The official opening ceremony for the GS in Bonn, Germany, was held August 31, 1998. The financial support of the GS by the German Ministry of Food, Agriculture, and Forestry is gratefully acknowledged.

Thanks to Dr. Lammers for his effective leadership and for his careful attention to the many details associated with the management of a large international organization such as CIGR. For further information, contact Lammers@uni-bonn.de.

Improved CIGR Website

The CIGR general website at www.ucd.ie/cigr/ is managed by Da-Wen Sun in Ireland. Thanks to Dr. Sun for his effective work in improving the appearance and content of the website and for keeping it up-to-date.

President’s Activities

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It has been a great privilege and honor to serve as President of CIGR the past two years. I have had the opportunity to travel extensively to some forty countries as Incoming President and President. Needless to say, I have met many wonderful people around the world. Some major speeches given to many audiences include:

Some major publication include:

President’s Travel

1998: January April CIGR World Congress Morocco, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, England, Scotland. July: ASAE Orlando. August September: EurAgEng Norway, Germany, Italy. October: AMIA Mexico. November: ALIA Argentina, Ecuador

1999 May June: Israel, Turkey, Greece, Denmark. July: ASAE Toronto, Nova Scotia. August September: New Zealand, Australia; SEASAE Zimbabwe, Czech Republic, Germany. November:. Oc Club of Bologna Italy, Spain

2000 April May: Hungary, Poland, Russia, Finland, Estonia, Latvia. July: ASAE Milwaukee; CSAE Winnipeg. November: ALIA Mexico. November December: CIGR World Congress Japan

A Word about the Future

CIGR leadership is in good hands for the next four years with President El Houssine Bartali (Morocco), 2001-2002, and President Axel Munack (Germany), 2003-2004. Secretary-General Peter Schulze Lammers (Germany) plans to continue.

World Congresses are scheduled as follows: 2002 Chicago, USA, joint with ASAE and 2006 Bonn, Germany, joint with EurAgEng

In 2004 a major conference is being planned for Beijing, China, hosted by the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering and the Chinese Society of Agricultural Machinery. Numerous section conferences will be held as well.

The profession of agricultural engineering is undergoing many changes. We face many challenges. But the opportunities are great. The impact of globalization and expanded world trade makes the need for a global network of agricultural engineers greater than ever before. Let us resolve to work harder to continue to serve the needs of people everywhere.

Bill A. Stout

President CIGR, 1999-2000

Comments on Professor

Robert Stefan Rowinski’s Letter

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I have read Professor Rowinski’s letter in the July 2000 issue of the CIGR Newsletter and I wish to adPd to the response written by Professor LeReoy Hahn in the October 2000 issue ofy the CIGR Newsletter. My comments are based on my regular pardticipation in CIuGR Congresses since the 1970’s and my experience and involvement in International development.

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CIGR is the only truly international agricultural engineering organization that has participants in its conferences/congresses from over 50 countries; a great number is from developing and developed countries. These conferences/congresses are a forum for those engineers/scientists who come from not only academia but also from Research centres, governmental organizations and the private sector. The number of papers is not that high compared to the number of presentations at some national societies. The apparent fragmentation of topics and the discussion of regional problems is precisely one of the aims/goals of the congresses. Congresses are a forum for sharing ideas, especially from the young professionals. The participation and discussions/ideas of the younger generations are vital for CIGR, as Professor Hahn indicated. The plenary sessions are available for invited papers from the so-called "experts" in a particular field. In addition, there are several CIGR sections with their special conferences for those seeking more focused researched presentations in their areas of expertise.

On the issue of interdisciplinary, CIGR has been, over the years, trying to endorse these types of activities through networking and mobility of agricultural engineers. Many of the sessions at CIGR congresses involve research papers that provide a forum for interdisciplinary research and the opportunity for researchers from various countries to work jointly over specific problems, and sometimes these discussions results in the development of exchange programs between their respective institutions.

Abdel Ghaly

President of CSAE/SCGR

Abdel.Ghaly@Dal.ca

NEWS FROM REGIONAL AND NATIONAL SOCIETIES

Reports from Recent Club of Bologna Meetings

29 experts from four American countries convened at the 1st Latin-American Meeting of the Club of Bologna, which was chaired by I. De Alencar N??s (Brazil) and organised under the aegis of CIGR during the COMBEA 2000, the National Congress of the Agricultural Engineering Brazilian Society. The aim was to examine and discuss the future of mechanisation and trends and requirements for the Latin-American Countries.

This important topic, which is relevant for the growth of the whole South-American machines market, was discussed on the basis of the key-note reports by E. Chartuni Mantovani, I. De Alencar N??s and P.R Hermmann (Brazil), A. Lara Lopez (Mexico), and J. Hilbert (Argentina).

The three speakers presented a general overview of their national agricultural situation, giving interesting data about the main productions and their trends, the farming types, the situation of mechanisation and its trends of development, the present problems and possible interventions to advance progress on the sector, with particular reference to the implications linked to the transfer of technology from developed countries.

In particular, E. Chartuni Mantovani underlined that the Brazilian agriculture, which is dominated by small farms, needs new ideas and enhanced efforts mainly in the educational sector. Technical assistance and training for farmers must be granted in order to achieve an economic competitiveness to satisfy the global market through the use of advanced technologies. In this respect, we have to take into account the changes on crop production processes due to the increasing diffusion of no-tillage techniques and, especially with regard to bigger farms, of precision agriculture. As a consequence, programmes for educational and professional training have to be considered with high priority in order to support governmental agricultural subsidy plans to foster international co-operation and to achieve a proper mechanizational level on small farms.

A. Lara Lopez pointed out how the Mexican agricultural system is based on small farms, mostly dedicated to cereal production. The first step in a conjectured improvement is to reduce the production costs, while at the same time increasing the mechanisation level and paying attention to soil tillage operations, in order to support the introduction of low cost solutions as, for example, no-tillage techniques. Furthermore, the progressive growth of local high-profit crops (cactus pear, chilli, etc) is very important, for which it is necessary to devise machines and tools to aid harvesting and handling practices.

J. Hilbert, who was represented at the meeting by I. De Alencar N??s, illustrated how the present situation in Argentina is characterised by the presence of small and medium farms specialised in cereals and industrial crops, the major part of which are managed by the contractors. Consequently, the standard of agricultural mechanisation is marked by the use of old tractors, while the implements market is growing day by day, especially for fertilisers and sprayers. Recently, contractors and big farms have started using precision agriculture, but only in a limited way due to the high investment costs and the problems tied to the management. For this reason, it is necessary to combine economic subsidies and technical assistance for small farms with the application of new suitable technologies chosen on the basis of their performance and their technical and economic benefits.

All the three speakers and the participants expressed their wish for a more dynamic transfer of technologies in the future, both inside the Latin-American countries and from the developed countries.

On the basis of the papers presented and the following, extensive discussion, the participants unanimously reached the following conclusions and recommendations:

Underline that the transfer of technologies is a complex and articulated process, for which it is necessary to consider and link together educational, social, institutional and commercial aspects as important components of the whole industrial collaboration.

Acknowledge the importance of supporting the transfer of proper technologies for developing countries in order to make feasible yield increase and cost reduction and avoiding, at any rate, negative impacts on the environment. It is then necessary to take into consideration that this process involves manifold problems, aspects and goals, which depend on the agricultural sector recipient if mostly based on small-medium farms rather than big farms, or contractors.

Recommend that every effort be made to rapidly develop farmer training and the testing and certification of new models, which will help introduce new technologies supported by educational actions. All this has to be included in the whole activity of the manufacturers who are involved in the technology transfer, and it has to be co-ordinated by local educational structures (Universities, Technical schools) with the purpose to promote the professional growth and the technical training of farmers.

With primarily the participation of manufacturers, underline the need to promote international projects of co-operation, which could be financed by International Agencies, to enhance the real profits arising from the use of new solutions and techniques.

Confirm the need to define the different components necessary to a correct transfer of technology processes based on their nature, peculiarities and mutual influence

Wish that the "Club of Bologna" can become the optimal organisation to carry out the analysis of the stages which constitute the technology transfer process of the agricultural mechanisation sector. Particularly, a deep analysis of the "industrial co-operation", from the simple step of selling to the more complex "joint-venture", should be developed by a group of experts belonging to the Club.

34 experts from 20 Countries took part in the 11th Club of Bologna Meeting Part 1, chaired by L. Bodria (Italy), held at the E.I.M.A. show under the aegis of CIGR and with the support of UNACOMA, to examine and discuss new technologies for evaluating the quality of agricultural perishable products intended for the fresh market. Introductory talks on this topcic were given by J. De Baerdemaeker (Belgium), covering the basic aspects, J. Zaske (Germany), concerning the properties of plants and the methods for their evaluation, and M. Ruiz Altisent (Spain), who spoke on the applicable measurement technologies and instruments.

J. De Baerdemaeker began by noting that consumers are becoming ever more exacting with regard to the quality of food products, and that this will effect considerable changes in the activities of producers and distributors. In fact, they are called upon to meet quality standards that are bound to increase over time, to meet the growing expectations of consumers. Hence the need to propose innovative and non-destructive measurement methods, although their results are at present still often difficult to interpret. It is therefore necessary, in the near future, to define precise international regulations, together with the corresponding measurement technologies associated with each method. Another increasingly important prevoblem concerns the need to document each phase of the entire supply chain, from producer to consumer, so that consumers can be informed of the methods used and assured of their conformity to international standards. J. Zaske provided a comprehensive analysis of the topic, noting the physiological alterations of the various products (amount of water in the product and its freshness; respiration; photosynthesis activity; ripeness and hardness; aroma and flavour) that are correlated with quality. For each parameter, he indicated the possible evaluation methods, discussing their validity, correspondence, limits of applicability, and hence the existing difficulties in obtaining a precise measurement, this with regard to the non destructive methods, which are mostly very recent and appear to be of greatest interest for the future. He also confirmed that an objective quality evaluation must reconcile the needs of the various actors in the entire production chain from the geneticist to the producer, from the distriabutor to the consumer with the specific parameters characterising the physiological qualities of the different crop productions.

Referring back to the two preceding papers, M. Ruiz Altisent pointed out that there is an enormous technology gap in the fruit and vegetable sector between the various European harvesting, grading and packaging industries, whose work capacities can vary by a factor of 500. Hence the need to develop instruments and technologies that can improve and harmonise the situation from the quality assurance standpoint, even though the perception and appreciation of these parameters varies considerably from country to country. Moreover, given the need to unify the technical definitions of quality properties, of the scope and type of each test and the associated measuring instruments, she presented a broad survey of the available instruments for evaluating the mechanical, optical and chemical properties of each product, discussing their advantages and drawbacks. Finally, she called attention to the need for a precise metrological evaluation (sensitivity, specificity, precision, accuracy and reproducibility) of each test.

On the basis of the three papers presented, and following an extensive discussion, the participants unanimously reached the following conclusions and recommendations:

Underline the growing importance in market terms and in view of its globalisation of the sector under discussion, which only in reuscent years has been taken into consideration by its primary actors (producers, sellers and purchasers), and by international research centres and laboratories.

Recognise the fundamental importance of defining standards for the instrumental evaluation of the various products, and hence the need to identify specific instruments and technologies appropriate to the various sizes of enterprises involved.

Point out the need for a specific definition of quality parameters and for an evaluation of appropriate instruments and technologies for creating solutions that are effective and transferable to the operational reality.

Call for an adequate commitment to defining reference standards for the quality and reliability of the proposed equipment, with particular reference to those that are most widely used, in order to guarantee conformance to the expectations of consumers.

Propose that the topic should be periodically reviewed by the Members of the Club in order to evaluate its progress and call upon public authorities, enterprises and consumers to insist on the conformity and compatibility of the results.

Therefore invite the presidency of the Club to undertake the promotion of initiatives aimed at answering the above mentioned needs.

43 experts from 17 countries, as well as representatives of FAO, ASAE, AIT and CIGR, took part in the 11th Club of Bologna Meeting Part 2 chaired by R. Hegg (U.S.A), held in Tsukuba (Japan) on the occasion of the XIV CIGR World Memorial Congress 2000, to examine and discuss ethical aspects in manufacturing agricultural machines. Introductory key-note reports were prepared by Y. Sarig (Israel), M. Kinoshita (Japan), and A. Scotti (Italy).

Y. Sarig (represented by R. Hegg) presented a wide-ranging and extensively documented paper, which started by examining the meaning of the term "ethics" and applying it to the business sector, a sector that plays an important role in various spheres of activity concerned with the production and selling of goods, as well as with competition. This concept is also appropriate for agricultural mechanisation, in that it involves the manufacturers, the dealers and the extensionists in all the sectors of crop and animal production.

There is in fact a clear ethical imperative to manufacture machines that fulfil the needs of different agricultural systems, assuring quality and cost-effectiveness in the performance of the various operations, whilst fully respecting the requisites of environmental protection and operator comfort and safety, as well as addressing the issue of maintenance. A good business deal, therefore, cannot be divorced from the ethical conduct of the party promoting it. In addition, it must guarantee compliance with the anti-trust legislation in force.

Despite the fact that, since 1980, in the USA the vast majority of internationally relevant manufacturers, as well as the national dealers association and the ASAE, have been adopting ethical codes of conduct for their activities, there still remains much to be done to ensure that these codes are implemented at every level and in every country. Hence the proposal that the Club should draft an ethical code that singles out 5/10 pre-eminent ethical values to be observed, and which can then be distributed to all the industrial and commercial players, inviting them to comply by adopting it as a code of conduct.

M. Kinoshita (Japan), representative of Kubota, analysed the ethical and organisational aspects internal to the Tsukuba diesel engine and tractor manufacturing plant necessary for safeguarding the quality of products and improving the working conditions of factory personnel as well as reducing environmental effects to the surrounding area of the factory.

A. Scotti (Italy), representative of CNH, recalled how the application of ethical principles in the sector of agricultural machinery manufacturing represents a sort of challenge for the production system, in that it requires achieving organisational objectives and criteria which must be harmonised with the interests of the commercial operators and of the end users. Today, the machinery industry operates within an increasingly complex web of relations, and is called upon to satisfy the different needs of farmers as well the requisites of the various agencies which regulate the agricultural, industrial and environmental, and workplace health and safety spheres. In addition, it must fulfil the expectations of the agricultural associations, of contractors, of the environmental lobbies, etc. Modern industry must therefore take responsibility for the total functionality and quality of its different products, from the initial production process to the issues concerning the on-farm management and operation of the various machines, and taking into account the socio-economic conditions of the end users of the machines. Citing the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, he concluded by asserting that the ethical awareness of industry is on the increase and is no longer restricted solely to production-related aspects, but also takes into account the needs of farmers and of environmental protection.

After hearing the three presentations, and following an extensive and wide-ranging discussion, the participants unanimously agreed to approve the following conclusions and recommendations:

Confirm that the ethical problems in any business and therefore also in the agricultural machinery sector are no longer limited to the production sphere. They have to include downstream the trading and marketing sectors and they must also take into account the social, technical and economic needs of the end user, and hence of agriculture and the environment in the case in point.

Remark that the current progressive reduction in the number of manufacturers, brought about by market globalisation, could lead to some distortion of the offer thus confronted with enormous differences of a social, technical, economic, organisational, pedological, climatic nature giving rise to major difficulties in interpreting the different requirements, with the risk in some cases of failing to comply with the local anti-trust legislation in force to approve a code of ethics in the various countries.

Unanimously approve that the Club should undertake to draft a code of ethics to be distributed in all the countries. It must be adopted as a permanent, compulsory code of ethics to be rigorously respected.

Invite the presidency of the Club to set up a restricted working group of Full Members for drafting the afore-mentioned ethical code, which shall be presented, discussed and approved at the forthcoming XII meeting, to be held in Bologna from 18th to 19th November 2001.

Giuseppe Pellizzi

President of the Club of Bologna

ASAE International Membership Promotion

In an effort to reach out to the international community and attract members from across the globe, the American Society of Agricultural Engineers (ASAE) is offering reduced, e-mail only memberships to people from low income countries. We extend an invitation to join ASAE through a special dues promotion for members from low-income, low-middle income and upper-middle income countries as defined by the World Bank based on per capita income. To determine if you are eligible, please refer to the ASAE website or the email given below to find out the classification of your country. You must be a national living and working in your home country to qualify for these special dues rates.

Membership is by e-mail only. Members will receive full benefits including ASAE’s newest benefitb electronic access to all technical publications including all peer-reviewed journals, standards, annual meeting papers, confereence proceedings, textbooks and monographs produced in 2001. Soon after joining ASAE you will receive a welcome packet with certificate, pin and member card. ASAE’sur monthly magazine Resource may be accessed ttrhrough the ASAE Web site at www.asae.org.

ASAE’s dues are invoiced annually and are based on the calendar year. The dues structureA US$15, US$/35 or US$55 is basedN on the World Bank’s income clasy sivifications, your national origin and whether you are l iving and working in that country. For further information, please contact Mark Crossley at crossley@asae.org or visit the ASAE Web site at twww.asae.org for an application and additional information.

Report on the Second International Conference on Agricultural Engineering,

Kumasi, Ghana, 24-28 September 2000

Background

The Agro-industry system is currently faced with the need to diversify production, minimise costs of production, improve product quality, safeguard the health of workers and customers, protect the environment and operate under a flexible system responsive to market demands.

The Second International Conference on Agricultural Engineering in Ghana, which was organised by the Ghana Society of Agricultural Engineering (GSAE), was aimed at bringing together scientists, engineers, economists, sociologists, researchers and other experts in the food production system to find solutions to some of these problems and to examine the role of engineering in achieving food security, with particular reference to the developing African nations.

Apart from updating knowledge in the area of agricultural engineering, the conference was expected to produce a multiplier effect in developing institutional capacity and expertise in developing African nations for future co-operation and development of activities related to Engineering applications in agriculture. It must be noted that it has become a bi-annual affair for the GSAE to either organise a national or an international conference. Dubbed as GSAE 2000, the second international conference on Agricultural Engineering was held from 24 to 28 September 2000 in Kumasi, Ghana.

Conference participants totalling about 100, were from Nigeria (3), Malawi (1), Sierra Leone (1), Namibia (1), Zambia (1), Zimbabwe (1), USA (2), France/Burkina Faso (1), UK/FAO (1) and Ghana (86).

Opening Ceremony, GSAE Bi-annual General Meeting, Scientific Sessions

The conference focused on engineering in agriculture with the theme Engineering contributions to food security in developing countries. One of the highlights of the opening ceremony was the donation of a tractor and a set of implements by the Minister to the Agricultural Engineering Department of KNUST for research and teaching purposes.

Several papers were presented to gain a broad, up-to-date understanding of the field of agricultural engineering. Scientific sessions were grouped into five major areas as: Machinery Engineering, Soil and Water engineering, Post-Harvest Engineering, Structures, Environment and Agro-waste Management.

GSAE Bi-Annual General Meeting

The GSAE Bi-annual General Meeting was held on 25 September 2000 to review the activities of the society for the period 1998/2000. The need for members to register as professional engineers with the Ghana Institution of Engineers (GhIE) was emphasised by the GSAE president who spoke on behalf of the GhIE President, Mr. J. Duncan Williams. For the period in question, the treasurer reported a rather low rate of payment of dues and encouraged members to endeavour to settle their dues fully and promptly, for the smooth running of the society. Elections were held to elect the Executive Committee for the period 2000/2002.

The Executive members each represent the academic departments of agricultural engineering in the Ghanaian universities and polytechnics. About six foreign delegates were in attendance at the meeting. The formation of the West African Society of Agricultural Engineering was also discussed as reported below.

West African Society of Agricultural Engineering (WASAE)

A proposal tabled by the Nigerian delegates to the GSAE Bi-annual general meeting on the need to form a West African Regional Society of Agricultural Engineering (WASAE) was well received. Dr. John Ashburner, the FAO Senior Regional Agricultural Engineer for Africa, who was also at the meeting, provided further information on an earlier attempt by the Francophone block to set up such a regional association in 1997. It was decided that an all-embracing, sub-regional society should be formed. An Interim Steering Committee for WASAE was proposed as follows:

President of GSAE (Ghana) Co-ordinator, Secretary of GSAE (Ghana) Secretary, President/Chairman of Nigerian Institution of Agricultuonral Engineers (NIAE) (Nigeria), Prof. O. O. Ajibola (Nigeria), Rev. Musa Jambawai (Sierra Leone), Dr. Sampson K. Agodzo (Ghana), Mr. Ganyahali Son (Burkina Faso), Mr. Quezon Y. Azouma (Togo), Dr. John Ashburner (FAO).

In the interim, the secretariat of WASAE will be hosted by GSAE. It is expected that Dr. Ashburner will facilitate the formation of WASAE in his capacity as the FAO Senior Agricultural Engineer for Africa. The mandate of the Interim Steering Committee is:

Conclusion

The general evaluation was that the conference has been successful in terms of organisation and level of active participation in all the conference programmes, especially the scientific sessions. Experiences shared by delegates from other African countries enriched the discussions. It must be noted that if the Commonwealth Foundation and the CTA had not agreed to sponsor their participation, their contributions to the success of the conference would not have been possible. It is hoped that they, as well as other donor agencies, will continue to support such meetings where experiences can be shared in the interest of all.

Dr. S. K. Agodzo

GSAE Secretary 1998/2000

ASAE to Honour CSAE/SCGR President

Professor Abdel Ghaly, President of the Canadian Society of Agricultural Engineering (CSAE/SCGR), received the prestigious Kishida International Award at the ASAE International Annual Meeting in July 2000 in Milwaukee. Dr. Ghaly was honoured for his devotion to improving food production in developing countries, outstanding leadership in international developments, teaching excellence, innovative research ideas, technology transfer, and organisational ability. He is being recognised for his expertise in Agricultural Engineering that has benefited students, research liberation, and farming committees around the world.

Dr. Ghaly is a professor in the Biological Engineering Department at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. He is a dedicated member of ASAE and CASE/SCGR and has been a strong supporter of CIGR. He is currently an ASAE Board of Trustees Member and the CSAE/SCGR President.

NEWS FROM SECTIONS AND WORKING GROUPS

Report of the Board Meeting of Section I

The Board Meeting was held on Nov 28, 2000 in Tsukuba, Japan and chaired by the Chair L. S. Pereira.

Composition of Section I Board.

The Chair reported that a decision to extend the number of Section Board members should be taken during the next Executive Board Meeting, looking essentially to have people actively contributing to the development of CIGR. The Section Board agreed that although it is very much desirable to have members who attend the Section meetings, what is really important is that Section Board members keep in contact with the other members and contribute to Section activities by e-mail or similar.

The Chair made an appeal to the members for finding potential members from the Asian and African Societies of Agricultural Engineering working on soil and water management or irrigation who could help developing ties with the respective regional societies. The Chair also asked for proposals to replace the former member Dr. Fuliatar, a soil management specialist from Slovakia by a new member with similar specialisation.

Prof. H. van Lier proposed to accept Ing. Agr. MSc. Daniel Somma, National Director of Conservation of Protected Natural Areas in Argentina, as a new Board member, and to replace Prof. F. Steiner with Prof. Dr. P. D. Taylor. The proposals have been unanimously approved.

The Chair informed that the initiative of our Section to incorporate "Liaison members" representing relevant associations and organisations in to the Section Board was soundly appreciated by the CIGR Technical Board.

Prof. Dr. Ted L. Loudon was proposed to join the Section Board representing the US based National Wastewater Recycling Association (NOWRA). Its goal is to achieve credibility on onsite wastewater treatment as a permanent wastewater solution for sustainable development by protecting human health and environmental quality (http://www.nowra.org/). Prof. van Lier proposed to include Dr. C. F. Jaarsma representing the World Road Association (PIARC). This association deals with road infrastructure planning, design, construction, maintenance and operation. It was founded in 1909 and nowadays PIARC has 97 national or federal government members, 2,000 collective or individual members in 129 countries, and over 750 experts in 20 standing Technical Committees (http://www.piarc.lcpc.fr/).

President Bill Stout turned up at this moment reporting on subjects related to the next Congress in Chicago and the electronic journal.

CIGR-Section I Mission statement, Objectives, Scope and Activities.

The Board approved the "CIGR-Section I Mission statement, Objectives, Scope and Activities", which will be published on the CIGR Website soon.

Report on the Technical Board Meeting of CIGR Chairs.

The Chair informed that our Mission Statement was highly appreciated by the Technical Board of CIGR Chairs. The following proposals presented by the Chair of Section I were positively considered:

1: Better clarification of relationships between congress organising and scientific committees and the CIGR-Section Boards for more effectively achieving common objectives and improving the quality of Congress papers and publications.

It was accepted that our Section could propose to the ASAE Organising Committee several members to be included in the Scientific Committee of the XV CIGR Congress in Chicago, 2002.

2: Re-examining the contributions of CIGR Sections to the e-journal of CIGR, probably considering specialised editorial boards relative to each Section domain, such as for the Transactions of ASAE.

It was accepted that Section I could set up a specific editorial board. The Chair shall make the necessary arrangements with the Editor-in-chief.

3. Providing better information and diffusion of the e-journal of CIGR to increase its circulation and its recognition by the scientific and engineering community.

This subject will be dealt when arranging for the specialised editorial board.

4. Promoting the links of the regional Agricultural Engineering Societies with the CIGR Sections; a representative of each of these societies should become either member or ex-office member of each Section Board for improved co-operation.

This proposal should be dealt in the General Assembly. However, the Section members should look for these potential members.

5. Considering the possibility for a Special Session at the XV CIGR Congress, Chicago, 2002, on "Decision and Expert Systems for Land and Water Management and Engineering" in collaboration with Section I.

It was accepted in principle, however depending on the ASAE organising Committee. A close collaboration with CIGR Section VII is desirable.

Nomination of invited speakers to address two major topics within the scope of our Section for the joint meeting with ASAE, July 2002, in Chicago, USA.

It was agreed that two major topics should be addressed.

Water Use and Environment, by Luis S. Pereira and Jose M. Tarjuelo as replacing.

Land Use Planning, by Hubert van Lier and Yohei Sato as replacing.

The Section Board decided that the invited speeches should be prepared in common. The first author should give the speech and the second one should be recognised as co-author. Both papers should be prepared keeping in contact to avoid repetitions.

Relationships with other Societies in the fields of Land and Water.

First: try to make CIGR part of the international group of the world water organisations.

Second: to improve relationships with NOWRA and PIARC, thus inviting liaison members as stated above.

Third: every Section Board member is asked to approach the regional Agricultural Engineering Societies to get representatives in this Board.

Inter-Regional Conferences "Environment-Water".

The Board considered very important to keep going with the series of Inter-Regional Conferences on Environment-Water to strengthen the incidence of environmental issues in agricultural water and land management.

The Section Board expressed appreciation for the fact that information on the 2nd Conference, entitled "Emerging Technologies for Sustainable Land Use and Water Management" (September 1999, Lausanne, Switzerland) was published in the CIGR Newsletter No. 50 of April 2000. However nothing was published on the 3rd Conference, entitled "Water Resources Management in the 21st Century" (1-3 June 2000, Budapest, Hungary) because no report was made available. The Board regretted that the Proceedings were printed without editing. It is considered important that proceedings from this series of conferences are edited, involving a broad range of scientific reviewers.

Jose M. Tarjuelo presented a proposal to organise the 5th Conference in Albacete, Spain. The Chair and Jose M. Tarjuelo will approach Prof. António Alves Soares to know if the 4th Inter-Regional Conference is confirmed to be held at Fortaleza, Brazil, by end August 2001 as it was foreseen. The Chair will approach Mr. Amadou Maiga (EIER, Ouagadougou) to confirm his interest in organising the 6th Conference.

Sponsored and co-sponsored activities.

Prof. van Lier reported on the successful Conference on "Fragmentation and Land Use Planning: Analysis and Beyond", held at Wageningen, The Netherlands, June 19-21, 2000, co-organised by CIGR and the International Study Group on Multiple Use of Land (ISOMUL). The proceedings were edited on CD-ROM format by C. J. Carsjens.

The Chair informed about other co-sponsored activities:

International Workshop on "Modelling of Transport Processes in Soil at Various Scales in Time and Space", Leuven, Belgium, November 24-26, 1999, organised by the Institute of Land and Water Management of the Katholieke Universiteit of Leuven.

8th International Workshop on "Drainage", New Delhi, India, February 1-4, 2000, organised by the ICID Indian Committee.

International Conference on "Micro and Sprinkler Irrigation Systems", New Delhi, India, February 8-10, 2000, organised by the Indian Central Board of Irrigation and Power.

4th International Conference on Soil Dynamics, Adelaide, Australia, March 26-30, 2000.

15th ISTRO Conference on "Tillage at the Threshold of the 21st Century: Looking Ahead", Fort Worth, Texas, United States, July 2-7, 2000, organised by the International Soil Tillage Research Organisation (ISTRO), Texas A&M University. Don Erbach represented CIGR.

6th International Micro-irrigation Congress, Cape Town, South Africa, October 22-27, 2000, organised by the South African National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (SANCID) and the South African Institute of Agricultural Engineers (SAIAE).

International Workshop on "Control of Adverse Impacts of Fertilisers and Agrochemicals", Cape Town, South Africa, October 25-26, 2000, organised by the ICID Committee on Sustainable Use of Natural Resources for Crop Production. André Musy represented CIGR. The proceedings were edited and all papers were fully reviewed. André Musy and by Luis S. Pereira are among the editors.

Activities to be developed under the initiative of SectionI Board members.

a)Conferences and workshops.

The Chair and other members informed about future co-sponsored activities:

International Conference on "Sustainable Soil Management for Environmental Protection Soil physical aspects", 2-7 July 2001, Florence, Italy, sponsored by CIGR Section I. André Musy and L. S. Pereira are members of the scientific committee. The next meeting of the Section-I Board will take place during this Conference. Mauro Greppi will be in charge of orsganising the Section Board Meeting, preferably on the second day of the Conference.

9th European Regional Conference on "Sustainable Use of Land and Water", 4-8 June 2001, Brno and Prague, Czech Republic, organised by the ICID in co-operation with CIGR-Section I, and EurAgEng: Soil and Water Group. Luis S. Pereira and André Musy are in the scientific committee.

International Workshop on Wastewater Reuse and Management, September 2001, Seoul, Korea, organised by ICID and sponsored by CIGR Section I. The main convenor is Ragab Ragab. Antonio Brasa is in the organising committee. Luis S. Pereira and Antonio Brasa are in the scientific committee. The Chair asked the Secretary to contact Ragab Ragab for further information.

Conference on "Land Use and Cover Change", University of Tokyo, Japan, November 2001. The main convenor is Yohei Sato. He is requested to provide further details to the Section members.

Workshop on "Land-use Planning and Management in Densely Populated Areas", Washington State University, United States, June 2002. The main convenor is Hubert van Lier. He is requested to provide further details to the Section members.

b) Special Session in the 2002 CIGR Congress.

The Section I is preparing a Special Session on Decision and Expert Systems for Land and Water Management and Engineering, with the following main themes: Land use change, land use planning and the environment; Causes and effects of land use changes; Land use planning options to direct future desired land uses;

Multifunctional rural roads engineering; Water and soil recuperation; Water reuses; Soil protection; Risk hazards of floods and droughts; Decision and expert systems to improve the performance of water use in agriculture; Use of target performances in systems design; Use of environmental and socio-economic performance in decision processes; Decision and expert systems for environmental upgrading of irrigation and drainage systems; Tools for decision-making in rehabilitation and modernisation; Tools for improved management of infiltration and drainage systems; Tools for improved irrigation methods and scheduling.

CIGR e-journal.

It was agreed that the Chair should contact CIGR President and the Editor-in-Chief, Rosana Moreira, to discuss how to implement a specific editorial board for Land and Water Engineering.

We have to make clear that this Specialised Editorial Board will be in fully co-operation with the Editor-in-Chief and will follow the editing policy of the Journal under the orientations of Rosana Moreira.

Members proposed for the Editorial Board are: Dr. Luis S. Pereira, Dr. André Musy, Dr. Antonio Brasa, Dr. Hubert van Lier, Dr. Yohei Sato, Dr. Pat Taylor, Dr. C. F. Jaarsma, and Dr. Mauro Greppi. The following colleagues are proposed to be additional reviewers: Dr. Frantisek Dolezal, (soil water, agricultural hydrology, drainage) Dr. Saeed Nairizi (irrigation, unconventional water reuse) Dr. Antonio A. Soares (irrigation engineering and management) Dr. José M. Tarjuelo (irrigation engineering and management) Dr. Ragab Ragab (irrigation and drainage, irrigation water requirements, water quality hydrology and remote sensing applications) Dr. Danielle de Wrachien (groundwater).

The Secretary will ask through the CIGR-FAO Global E-mail Network, CIGR-FAO-LanWat-L, colleagues who are willing to be reviewers. The Secretary will also ask for papers for the electronic Journal through CIGR-FAO-LanWat-L, and will set permanent information on the web page where the Journal shows up (as a link).

Other subjects to be proposed by the members.

The Secretary will seek for people to be members of the two Working Groups on "Sustainable Land Use and Landscape Planning" and "Water Management and Information Systems", through the CIGR-FAO Network.

Antonio Brasa

Secretary of Section I

Report of the meeting of Section III of CIGR in Tsukuba at the

XIV CIGR Memorial World Congress 2000

The Board Meeting was held on Wednesday, Nov 29, 2000 in Tsukuba, Japan and chaired by E.H. Bourarach.

Past activities of Section III since the last board meeting

Oleg Marchenko gave a short report on the successful Conference on Energy and Resources saving in Agriculture"a which took place from 3 to 5 October 2000 in Moscow ate VIESKH. The proceedings of this conference are available in Russian and will be forwarded to interested people by Professor Marc henko.

Furthermore he reported on the foundation of Euro-Asian Association of Agricultural Engineers (EAAAE) where he will serve as secretary general. Furthermore he stressed the necessity for joint activities in the framework of EAAAE. Activity of CIGR section III within this organisation should be enhanced and further activities should be undertaken. The protocol of the foundations of EAAAE is attached to this report. A major problem is the present insufficient supply of agricultural machinery which is putting the production of agricultural goods at risk.

The board welcomes the fact that Professor Marchenko is representing CIGR in the OECD tractors committee as this will enable it to keep up with standardisation issues and further development while connections can be formed with relevant specialists in various countries. Professor Marchenko will further report relevant developments on his activities in OECD.

Pro. Bourarach raised the issue of the CIGR-FAO-email-network and the important role it can play as a discussion group in the area of plant production. According to the will of the organisers all discussion groups will enjoy complete freedom and the broad basis of researchers represented in the forum should make it possible to find answers to most of the arising questions. Prof. Bourarach reports furthermore on the answers he received on a questionnaire about the desired topics in the e-mail forum. The topics raised most were „precisieon farming" and „mechanisation for developing countries".

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The chair remarked that more input into the forum from the board members would be desirable and that it might be a good idea to raise an interesting topic for discussion to try to get more response from the subscribers.

Despite the total freedom of the forum very few undesirable contributions occurred (only 2 were known to the chair) which had to be removed in the interest of the community by the webmaster.

Election of new board members

Dr Weise and Dr Jasinski were unanimously voted as new board members and proposed to the General Assembly

Dr. Weise was voted as new secretary of the section and proposed to the General Assembly.

Mr. Chèze, who has served section III as chair and secretary has left the board section III due to his retirement. The board thanked him for his devoted and successful work in section III of CIGR and his great role in preparing the CIGR handbook.

The board members Faust, Sutton and Sundell, whose term on the board had expired, were re-elected.

Planned activities of CIGR section III for the year 2001

CIGR, section III will support the planned IV International Conference on "Microprocessor Systems in Agriculture" in June 2001, which will be organised by Dr. Jasinski at the Institute of Agricultural Machinery and Equipment of the Warsaw University of Technology together with the Institut für Betriebstechnik und Bauforschung of the FAL in Braunschweig. The board of section III of CIGR will support this conference in all possible ways. Dr. Jasinski will co-ordinate necessary actions with Dr. Weise who will represent CIGR section III at the conference.

The Institut für Landtechnik of the Justus-Liebig-Universität will organise on 10 April 2001 in co-operation with KTBL a seminar on the use of containers for grain harvesting. The event will comprise a technical demonstration of different container vehicles and presentation on various aspects of the use of containers in agricultural logistics. CIGR section III will support co-sponsorship of this event.

In Jordan a conference is planned on Sciological and Economicall Aspect in Agricultural Mechanisation" for the year 2001. The organisers will be Prof. Bassam Snobar and Dr. Mohamed Al-Widyan. The exact date is still to be determined.

A Workshop on Precision Agriculture" is planned for July 2001 in Brazil which will be organised by Pr"of. N??s. Further details are still to be supplied.

For the year 2002 a Workshop on Research and Testing Equipment and Procewdures for Animal Traction" in Ouagadougou, Burkina Fahso is planned. It will be organised by IRSANT (Mr. Son) and the regional association (Mr Azuma). The process is under way with the help of the chair of section III.

The chair asked the members of the board to support the upcoming CIGR world congress in 2002 by submitting contributions and taking part in relevant committees. Influence should be taken on the programme topics or the installation of special sessions according to the strategic interest of section III described below.

Discussion of the strategy of the section for 2000-2005

The chair offered to the board a report on the period of 1998 to 2000 and asked for discussion of the matters relevant for future strategic decisions. As the most important point in this report the Mission Statement of the Section and the Statement of Scope were further discussed.

The board agreed that the mission statement was correct. However greater importance should be given to matters of standardisation. Horticulture will be included in the work of Section III.

The statement of scope was approved too. However, a broader approach to plant production seemed desirable to the board. This would mean that importance will be given to the whole aspect of mechanisation as shown in the CIGR handbook Volume III. Issues of special importance at present were identified by the chair as:

As a further point the incorporation of information technology (IT) and the growing use of the means of operations research in decision support systems was mentioned. The board therefore decided to co-operate closely with the newly set up section 7 in these matters. The offer of Dr. Sindir (member of the board of section VII) to participate in sessions of section III was in this context welcomed.

A further upcoming issue for section III will be quality needs and processing of agricultural goods. Of special interest are here all matters of logistics and increased demands of food processors and retailers and on quality and timeliness of deliveries. Furthermore the problem of adequate distribution of food in developing countries was has to be addressed. It was agreed that to tackle this task close co-operation with section VI should be kept.

Furthermore section III should increase its ties with people and organisations involved in mechanical engineering and pay attentions to developments in biotechnology, soil productivity and fertilisation, hydronomics and farmstead mechanisation. Co-operation with section I seemed therefore advisable, especially as far as soil management is concerned.

The CIGR handbook being one of the most important technical publications in agricultural engineering at present should be made available as far as possible and kept up-to-date. At present a translation into French is being organised by the chair of section III. As second edition should be envisaged around the year 2010.

The final version of the Mission Statement and the Statement of Scope of the section will be found on the CIGR website and sent to the members of the board after final revision.

Miscellaneous

The next meeting of the board of section III was scheduled to take place during the ASAE Annual International Meeting in Sacramento, California July/August 2001.

Further information on upcoming conferences will be exchanged by e-mail. In preparation of the upcoming board meeting an experimental virtual meeting of the board in the form of an internet chat will be undertaken.

Günther Weise

Secretary of Section III

Report of Section IV Board Meeting

The meeting was held in Tsukuba, Japan, on November 28, 2000. Prof. Kamaruddin, who was present in the CIGR Technical board meeting that took place the day before, supplied information regarding the growing CIGR-FAO relations, the CIGR e-journal, and the Section Mission statements. Then Prof. Papadakis presented the document of the mission statement of Section IV. The presentation was followed by a detailed discussion among all the participants.

Conference activities of Section IV

Prof. Kamaruddin presented the progress of the organisation of the next Section IV conference "Renewable Energy for Regional Development" to be held in Bali, Indonesia, August 27, 2001. A discussion also took place on the organisation of the 2003 Section conference. Prof. J. Piechocki (Poland) was asked if he could organise it in Poland. He has accepted the responsibility to examine this possibility and inform Section IV in due time.

Future work

The discussion focused on the activities to be organised towards accomplishing the goals and objectives included in the Section mission document. Prof. Papadakis mentioned that it will be useful to develop a permanent communication network among the members of the Section via e-mail.

Election of board members

New members were elected to the board: C. Akdeniz (Turkey), J. Piechocki (Poland), T. Gemtos (Greece), H. Irps (Germany) and S. Heier (Germany).

Candidate invited speakers for the joint CIGR-ASAE meeting in 2002

Regarding the invited speakers for the joint CIGR-ASAE meeting in Chicago 2002, it was agreed that whoever is interested to be included in the list of those to be considered as invited speakers should send an expression of interest to Prof. Ramdani and Prof. Kamaruddin. The selection of the invited speakers may be based on their CV.

Other matters

Prof. Papadakis proposed the future meetings of the board of Section IV to be open to all those interested to participate. However, on crucial decisions the board members will vote exclusively. The participants accepted the proposal.

George Papadakis

Section IV

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