The Mediterranean Sea, with a shoreline extending over 46,000 km, is shared by three continents (Africa, Asia and Europe) and twenty countries, with a joint population of over 130 million inhabitants.

In this context, water is a highly valuable resource and one that presents various special problems. Since ancient times, man has prized water and advanced technology has been created to investigate and control this resource.

Water has been the basis for the development of classical cultures, of flourishing agricultural activities and, nowadays, of tourism, with over 100 million visitors to the Mediterranean region every year. However, there is a striking imbalance, in space and in time, in the distribution and consumption of water, which has a direct effect of the wealth of the communities around the shores of the Mediterranean.

In many areas, rivers are few and the flow of water is scarce or non-existent; on the other hand, there is great potential in aquifers and these are becoming an invaluable source of water supply, which has led to intensive and sometimes unsustainable levels of exploitation.

In the light of all this, Spain, a country with a wealth of experience in the field of hydrogeology, invites experts in the field of groundwater to a forum to discuss and exchange views on the subject, in the incomparable setting of the Costa del Sol (Andalusia, southern Spain), to debate the main problems facing us, to describe practical experiences and to propose solutions for a better future, to guarantee the sustainable development of water resources.

In the framework of this International Congress, moreover, we shall hold two symposia: the third edition of the International Symposium on Karst, to be held in the province of Málaga, and the Symposium on Groundwater in the Great Cities of the Mediterranean. Additionally, there will be a Workshop on Global Change and Subterranean Water Resources in the Mediterranean Basin and the annual meeting of Project 513 of the UNESCO International of Geological Sciences Programme "Global study of karstic aquifers and water resources.

The published Proceedings of this Congress will doubtless form a reference point in hydrogeology in general and for the Mediterranean countries, in particular.