About the SWIM Series
The Salt Water Intrusion Meeting (SWIM) is one of the oldest and most respected international conference series in coastal hydrogeology. It was founded on 28–29 November 1968, when some twenty German, Dutch and Danish scientists gathered in Hannover, Germany, at the invitation of Professor Wolfgang Richter (Geological Survey of Lower Saxony) to discuss salt water intrusion in coastal aquifers (Post et al., 2018, Hydrogeology Journal).
Since then SWIM has been held biennially. From 2006 onwards — following the merger with the SWICA (Salt Water Intrusion and Coastal Aquifers) series — the meetings alternate between European and non-European host countries. SWIM 2027 in Okinawa will be the 29th meeting in the series.
The official SWIM series website, including proceedings of all past meetings, is maintained at www.swim-site.nl.
Past Host Cities
The complete list of SWIM meetings below is compiled from the official SWIM series website (www.swim-site.nl/history.html) and the peer-reviewed 50-year SWIM review (Post et al., 2018).
| # | Year | Host city | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1968 | Hanover | Germany |
| 2 | 1970 | Vogelenzang | Netherlands |
| 3 | 1972 | Copenhagen | Denmark |
| 4 | 1974 | Ghent | Belgium |
| 5 | 1977 | Medmenham | United Kingdom |
| 6 | 1979 | Hanover | Germany |
| 7 | 1981 | Uppsala | Sweden |
| 8 | 1983 | Bari | Italy |
| 9 | 1986 | Delft | Netherlands |
| 10 | 1988 | Ghent | Belgium |
| 11 | 1990 | Gdańsk (Danzig) | Poland |
| 12 | 1992 | Barcelona | Spain |
| 13 | 1994 | Cagliari | Italy |
| 14 | 1996 | Malmö | Sweden |
| 15 | 1998 | Ghent | Belgium |
| 16 | 2000 | Międzyzdroje | Poland |
| 17 | 2002 | Delft | Netherlands |
| 18 | 2004 | Cartagena | Spain |
| 19 | 2006 | Cagliari (joint with 3rd SWICA) | Italy |
| 20 | 2008 | Naples, Florida | USA |
| 21 | 2010 | São Miguel, Azores | Portugal |
| 22 | 2012 | Búzios | Brazil |
| 23 | 2014 | Husum | Germany |
| 24 | 2016 | Cairns (joint with 4th APCAMM) | Australia |
| 25 | 2018 | Gdańsk | Poland |
| 26 | 2020 | San Diego (cancelled) | USA |
| 27 | 2024 | Ein Gedi (Dead Sea) (rescheduled from October 2023) | Israel |
| 28 | 2025 | Barcelona | Spain |
| 29 | 2027 | Okinawa | Japan |
Sources: official SWIM series history (swim-site.nl/history.html) and the individual conference websites (swim2020.org, swim2023.com, swim2025.upc.edu). Cancelled and rescheduled meetings are retained in the sequential numbering; SWIM 2025 Barcelona is announced as the 28th edition. Please report any correction to the Organising Committee.
From European Origins to a Global Community
SWIM began as a west-European meeting, but as the number of participating countries grew — and particularly after the 2006 merger with SWICA in Cagliari — the meeting has become a truly global forum for coastal groundwater science. In 2016 SWIM was held jointly with the Asia-Pacific Coastal Aquifer Management Meeting (APCAMM) in Cairns, reflecting the strong and growing interest of the Asia-Pacific community.
SWIM 2027 will be the first SWIM hosted in Japan and the second in the Asia-Pacific region. It marks a significant step in extending the SWIM community to the island nations of the western Pacific, where coastal and island groundwater management is a daily reality.
Reference
Post, V. E. A., Oude Essink, G. H. P., Szymkiewicz, A., Bakker, M., Houben, G., Custodio, E., Voss, C. I. (2018). Celebrating 50 years of SWIMs (Salt Water Intrusion Meetings). Hydrogeology Journal 26(6): 1767–1770. DOI: 10.1007/s10040-018-1800-8