FIRST CHAPTER

MANAGEMENT AND EFFECTIVE CONTROL OF TRANS-

BOUNDARY WATER RESOURCES IN THE LIGHT OF PRINCIPLES

OF INTERNATIONAL WATER LAW

SUBMITTED BY: MOHAMMAD AFAQ KHAN

SHARIAH AND LAW

RESEARCH SUPERVISOR: MUHAMMAD ZAMIN

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

DEPARTMENT OF SHARIAH AND LAW

ISLAMIA COLLEGE PESHAWAR (SEPTEMBER
2024)
CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

International waters, Lakes and Rivers shared by two or more states supports the lives of large

number of people across the world. How can we manage these resources to promote peaceful

cooperation and sustainable development in the time of severe water stress? Trans-boundary

water resources have the potential to cause social instability and lead individuals and countries

towards disputes (Teclaff, 1996). A unilateral move by one of the upstream states by building a

dam could directly disturb the natural flow of water for downstream states and can create climate

change. On the other way it is true that trans-boundary water management creates benefits for

everyone, in case they share the waters proportionately. Therefore, to curb the impact of climate

change due to building of dames require a high-level integrated system based on legal and

institutional framework (McCaffrey, 2019).

Recognizing the benefits of managing of the international waters, the history of development of

international agreements, governing trans-boundary water courses, dates back to the 1911

Madrid Declaration on International Regulations concerning the use of international waters for

all purposes.2 This agreement specified general principles of water management for the

cooperative and sustainable development. These principles also Highlighted in 1966 Helsinki

Rules on the use of international rivers. Modern international water law are based on Helsinki

Rules of 1966 created by International Law Association (ILA). The Helsinki Rules were further

highlighted in the 1997 UN Convention. The ILA revised its water laws in 2004 at the Berlin

Conference.Currant international law advocating public participation, environmental

sustainability, equitable and reasonable utilization and causing no significant harm in addition to

the UN convention called the UNECE a sub section of which is a water convention (Hollo, 2017).
The convention requires the parties to reduce Trans-boundary impact, use trans-boundary waters

in a reasonable and equitable way and manage them sustainably.in February 2003 the UN ECE

water convention was amended to allow countries outside Europe to join. Now it is a Global

legal framework for trans-boundary water cooperation. Article 97 of the UN charter and the

UNECE is focused on more on water quality issues while article 98 is concerned with water

allocation. Water is an internationally shared resources have the potential to sustain the

economic growth, food production and human survival. Water across national borders in the

form of Rivers and Lakes and when any Riparian country allocate or divert waters, necessarily it

should be results conflicts. Around 260 Rivers flows from one country to another and more than

forty percent of the world population is defendant upon fresh water from these international

Rivers (Hey, 2016).

There is an alarm of risk associated with sharing water and making treaties, because if one

country cooperates and the other does not, the cooperating country loses. However, if both of the

countries cooperating with each other significant harm is avoided for both countries The role and

significance of water in the universe is well known as supporting life in every form everywhere.

It is inseparable linkage to the domestic and industrial uses and probably in almost all economic

development. Agriculture, industry, energy are few commercial and economic activities that

affect both the quality and quantity of water resources ( Orakhelashvili, 2022). International water

law developed quite slowly until the middle of the 20th century. Treaties that focused on water

allocation and use issues primarily gained momentum after 1930.

There are two highly relevant international water conventions for trans-boundary water

cooperation. The UN Convention on the Law of the Non-navigational Uses of International

Watercourses, and the 1992 UNECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Trans-boundary

Watercourses and International Lakes (which recently broadened its membership beyond the EU

to a global audience) One of the essential features of international water law that it is still in the

developing stage with regard to non-navigational uses. There is still no international treaty in

force that could balance and synchronize non navigational uses and protection of international

watercourses. The institute of international and the international law association provide

guidance in this field through their scholarly work, reports and resolutions. This attempt

contributed significantly to the process of codification of the existing principles of customary

international water law (Gryzbowski, 2009).

The process of evolution and codification of the principles of international law with regard to no

navigational purposes commenced with the adoption of Act of the Congress of Vienna on June 9

1815.no-navigitional uses such as irrigation, hydropower and industry were only in the early

stage of development. Means of transportation were also in the similar stage of development.

This situation give considerable importance to navigation. The Act of the Congress of Vienna

included 10 Articles on navigation on international Rivers. Stated the powers whose were

separated or crossed by the same navigable River undertook to regulate by common agreements

all that related to the navigation of such Rivers. For that they would name Commissioners who

would adopt the principles established in the Act. The Act established principle of freedom of

navigation on such a River for all Riparian states on reciprocal basis (Scott, 2004).

As such the Act of the Congress of Vienna can be considered a Landmark in the evolution of

International Water Law. The trend towards freedom and priority of Navigation established by

the Act continued to prevail and was confirm in 1885 by the general act of the congress of Berlin
with regard to Congo and Niger River, thus extend the freedom to navigation to non-Riparian

states.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. How effective are current international water law frameworks in managing and resolving

conflicts over trans-boundary water resources?

2. What are the key legal and institutional challenges faced by riparian states in

implementing international water law for the equitable and sustainable use of

transboundary waters?

3. How do specific case studies of trans-boundary river basins illustrate the successes and

limitations of international water law in practice?

Aims and Objectives

• The purpose of this study is to apply international water law to a critical analysis of the

management and control mechanisms of Trans-boundary water resources, with an

emphasis on how well they work to foster cooperation and reduce conflict among

riparian states.
 • To investigate the historical development and contemporary framework of international

water law that governs trans-boundary water resources, including significant accords and

conventions.

• To assess the role of international water law in ensuring equitable and sustainable use of

trans-boundary water resources by riparian governments.

• To analyze the problems and prospects for implementing international water law

principles in trans-boundary water dispute resolution, with an emphasis on case studies of

specific river basins.

METHODOLOGY

This research is purely qualitative and will be carried out through

qualitative research methodology from secondary data mostly. Different
resources are taken into consideration because the nature of this research
is purely qualitative. All the data used will be secondary from different
research papers, annual reports, provincial government’s reports,
international reports, Dawn articles and different websites.
References:

1. Gryzbowski, A., McCaffrey, S. C., & Paisley, R. K. (2009). Beyond international water

law: Successfully negotiating mutual gains agreements for international

watercourses. Pac. McGeorge Global Bus. & Dev. LJ, 22, 139.

2. Hey, E. (2016). Advanced introduction to international environmental law. Edward Elgar

Publishing.

3. Hollo, E. J. (2017). Introduction: the concept and traditions of water management law.

In Water Resource Management and the Law (pp. 1-18). Edward Elgar Publishing.

4. McCaffrey, S. C., Leb, C., & Denoon, R. T. (2019). Introduction to the research

handbook on international water law. In Research Handbook on International Water

Law (pp. 1-9). Edward Elgar Publishing.

5. Orakhelashvili, A. (2022). Akehurst's modern introduction to international law.

Routledge.

6. Scott, S. V., & Scott, S. V. (2004). International law in world politics: An

introduction (p. 172). Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers.

7. Teclaff, L. A. (1996). Evolution of the river basin concept in national and international

water law. Nat. Resources J., 36, 359.