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Media Contact: Jennifer Forbes 330-463-5400
NAWE Founder to Speak at Mesopotamian Marsh Conference September 30, 2004 - Forest Lake, MN - North American Wetland Engineering PA (NAWE) announced today that co-founder Scott Wallace has been named as a speaker at the Mesopotamian Marsh and Modern Development Conference. The event will be held at the Harvard Design School October 28-30 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The conference will address approaches for sustaining ecological and cultural landscapes in Iraq. Wallace is a nationally known expert on constructed wetlands and decentralized wastewater systems. "People aren't aware of the damage Saddam Hussein caused during his reign in Iraq," says Wallace. "Basically, he destroyed the largest wetlands in the world. It's as though someone drained the Florida Everglades, and now we have to figure out how to bring them back." In addition to his consulting work, Wallace is authoring two books and has authored several articles on the topic of constructed wetlands. The Mesopotamian Marsh is an area in southern Iraq thought by some to be the original Garden of Eden. During the 1990's, water drainage of the Marsh destroyed the livelihood of half a million people living in that area. Experts consider this one of the largest instances of 'eco-cide' in history. The Harvard conference will focus on approaches to restoring the area for sustainable fishing and farming by Iraqis. Conference topics will also include the history of hydrological and ecological alterations to the Mesopotamian Marsh and the sustainability of wetlands and nature reserves around the world. The conference will address new technologies for ecological design and wastewater treatment. Wallace and his colleagues at NAWE are considered the foremost U.S. experts in constructing wetlands and designing wastewater treatment systems using plants, bacteria and other natural sources. Recent projects have included a wastewater treatment system for the US Embassy in Abu Dhabi and a large water treatment system for British Petroleum in Casper, Wyoming. Closer to home, NAWE has long been involved with the popular Lutsen Resorts in northern Minnesota. Curt Sparks, President of NAWE, says "We're dedicated to advancing the technology of wetland restoration and creation. We hope NAWE can contribute to restoring what was once an extremely productive wetland complex for the Iraqi people."
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