A research paper conducted by researchers from the College of Science of UAEU won the Best Paper Award at the Fifth Annual International Conference on Geological and Earth Sciences (GEOS 2016), which was held in Singapore during October 10 -11^th, 2016.

Dr. Saber Hossein from the Department of Geology of the College of Science presented a research paper titled "Climate change and its impact on the sustainability of groundwater in Al Jaw plain in Al Ain City in the UAE ". Prof. Hassan Arman, Dr. Ahmed Murad, Prof. Ala Aldahan from the College of Science, and Dr. Aydin Basarir from the College of Food and Agriculture all contributed to the research.

Dr. Ahmed Murad, Dean of the College of Science, stressed the importance of participating in such international conferences. This highlights the active role of UAEU as a leading research institution on both regional and international levels. It also highlights the importance of supporting faculty members in their research, in line with the strategy of the University as a scientific research institution that seeks to achieve excellence.

The above mentioned research focused on the rapid growth in agricultural activities and new urban areas, witnessed in Al Ain in the last decades. These activities mainly rely on groundwater, which supplies most of the natural water in the UAE. This is particularly so, regarding the quartet reservoir, which is the main system of shallow groundwater in Al Jaw plain, south-east of Al Ain. This area extends between the Oman Mountains in the East and Jebel Hafeet in the West. Al Jaw plain is the main receiver of rainfall in the adjacent mountainous areas, which consist of lakes and ponds. Water runs off the valleys and finally it seeps into the ground. This source then feeds the underground quartet reservoir.

The study shows the capacity of Jaw plain for absorbing rainwater, as well as assesses the annual rainfall rates and temperatures from the climate control stations in the region. In addition, the research shows the effects of rainstorms and the floods on the groundwater level, and also sheds light on likely effects of future climate change in the area, and offers possible strategies to anticipate these changes.