Professor José Liria Montañés has recently retired from Santander University, Spain and is currently the Secretary of the Spanish Committee on Irrigation and Drainage. He has extensive professional experience as an international consultant in hydraulic works, especially in the use of canals for irrigations purposes, as well as in hydroelectric installations and drinking water supplies, and has worked on the design, construction and operation of canals for the Hydrographic Confederation of the Guadiana River and as Project and Works Manager for the Isabel II Canal in Madrid