Institute of Hydrobiology (CAS) and Budapest University of Technology and Economics were ratified to implement the bilateral inter-governmental S&T cooperation program between China and Hungary during 2009 and 2010. Supported by this program, experts from both countries jointly held a bilateral workshop from Nov. 7 to 10 in Hefei, Anhui province, to conduct a comparative study between Chaohu Lake in China and Lake Balaton in Hungary. These two lakes are large shallow lakes and similar in size. Taking the theme of "Restoration of Large Shallow Eutrophic lakes: Mechanisms and Technologies”, the workshop was chaired by IHB Prof. Yiyong ZHOU and a four-member Hungarian delegation led by Prof. Vera Istvánovics attended this workshop. Experts from Tongji University, University of Science and Tecnology of China, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology (CAS), Fujian Normal University, Anhui Provincial Academy of Environmental Science and Institute of Hydrobiology (CAS) present at the workshop which was organized by Institute of Hydrobiology (CAS) and co-organized by Anhui Provincial Academy of Environmental Science and Hubei Society of Oceanology & Limnology. The workshop also got support from China’s Ministry of Science and Technology and the State Key Laboratory of Freshwater and Biotechnology.   

At the workshop, scientists from both China and Hungary had an extensive and in-depth discussion on the mechanisms and restoration technologies of eutrophic lakes. They centered on China’s large shallow eutrophic lakes such as Chaohu Lake (the largest lake in Anhui and one of the five largest freshwater lakes in China), Poyanghu Lake (the largest freshwater lake located in Jiangxi province), Taihu Lake (a large lake in the Yangtze Delta plain, on the border of the Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces) and Dongting Lake (a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan Province) from different angles, i.e., wetland conservation, characteristics of cyanobacterial bloom and fish behavior. The Hungarian experts later had a field survey at the location where the restoration pilot project of the littoral zone of Chaohu Lake is being constructed by the Institute of Hydrobiology (CAS). They also visited Chaohu Field Station of the institute and put forward beneficial suggestions for the construction. Both sides reached a preliminary agreement on future cooperation and academic exchanges.