The papers collected in this book were given and discussed at the symposium on "Soil water physics and technology," which was held in Rehovot, Israel, from August 19th-September 4th, 1971. It was sponsored by the International Society of Soil Science (1.S.S.S.) through its Commissions I (soil physics) and VI (soil technology), and organized by the Israeli Soil Science Society. Thanks are due to the Editors for having assembled contributions and discussion remarks into a well-rounded, coherent book. The subjects covered in this book are the theoretical and practical aspects of the following topics: water movement in soils, soil-water interactions, evaporation from soil and plants, water requirements of crops, ion activity and migration in soils, soilwater management and salinity. In as much as these contributions were not solicited, they represent ideas and subjects considered important by the authors and debators. In science, one often finds a gap between basic research and practical application. If reading this book creates a feeling of an apparent lack of balance between theory and practice, this represents the state of our science today, and the thoughtful reader can and will recognize that much remains to be done. W. R. GARDNER T.]. MAR5HAL President, Commission I President, Commission VI 1.5.5.5.

Regional Approaches to Water Pollution in the Environment integrates knowledge and experience on pollution problems related to industrial, agricultural and municipal activities and former military sites, with special emphasis on the Black Triangle: the region situated at the borders between North Bohemia, Polish Lower Silesia and South Saxony. Here, some five million inhabitants live in an area of brown coal basins having the highest emissions of sulphuric and nitrogen emission in the whole of Europe. The large-scale damage in this region is due to obsolete technology and insufficient equipment for monitoring emissions. Health effects are severe, and controlling the pollution can only be done at high cost. There is thus a need to exchange knowledge and experience on methods for evaluating the expected effects of measures and purification techniques to remedy ground and surface water pollution.