Two graduate research assistants from WERI, Ms. Mary Clare Snaer and Mr. Risel Uludong, presented their research projects at the 2025 UCOWR/NIWR Annual Water Resources Conference held at the Graduate Hotel, University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Hosted from June 3–5, 2025, the conference welcomed a global community of researchers, educators, students, and water professionals to engage on current topics in water resource science and management.
Mr. Uludong presented his research during the conference’s Session 42: Methods in Watershed Management. His research focused on Updating the Northern Guam Lens Aquifer’s (NGLA) Groundwater Protecction Zone (GWPZ). In his presentation, he highlighted the need to assess key points of entry and exit of groundwater to and from the aquifer to safeguard Guam’s water resource.
Ms. Snaer presented in Session 49: Hydrology on June 5, 2025, sharing insights from her thesis project, Hydrologic Data Analysis from the Deep Observation Wells in the Northern Guam Lens Aquifer. Her work focuses on analyzing long-term hydrologic data from deep observation wells across northern Guam to better understand changes in freshwater lens thickness in response to rainfall, sea level, and El Niño events. The study contributes to a broader understanding of Guam’s groundwater resources and supports future aquifer sustainability planning.
During the conference’s Awards Banquet on June 4, Ms. Snaer was also recognized as one of the recipients of the NIWR Regional Student Travel Awards for the Oceania and Islands Region (view post on the National Institute of Water Resources’ LinkedIn).
WERI is proud to support student research that addresses Guam’s unique water issues and explores sustainable solutions for our island.
Photo of Ms. Mary Clare Snaer, WERI RA and EV graduate student, among her fellow recipients of the National Institute of Water Resources’ Regional Student Travel Awards during the UCOWR award banquet on June 4, 2025 in Minneapolis, MN. Photo by UCOWR/NIWR.
