Transboundary Water Cooperation: Principles, Practice and Prospects for China and Its Neighbours
... One area of particular concern to us at Water International is the governance of water across national boundaries (e.g., Ho, 2021;Wouters et al., 2018). Spijkers and Devlaminck consider the interplay among legal frameworks at various layers of transboundary water governance, with a specific study of the case of the Lancang-Mekong River. ...
... The purpose of such provisions is not only to ensure that states will adopt and ratify a multilateral or bilateral treaty but also to ensure compliance with the provisions and implement them in their respective contexts. This is vital, as there are no established means of pushing states to comply with regulatory frameworks following their signature or ratification (see, in general, Wouters et al. 2018). Moreover, the provisions related to traditional data and information exchange are written in a similar manner and overlook potentially sensitive issues that may cause disputes (despite their relevance) for reasons such as state security (see Leb 2013). ...
This article examines the potential legal implications of the adoption and implementation of transboundary water agreements and international water conventions as a result of the emergence of ‘big data’. This digital technology is set to change the ways in which water data is collected and processed. Big data has been addressed by a few previous studies, which have focused primarily on information technology and environmental law. Using doctrinal and non-doctrinal legal research methods, this article will answer the following question: Are there legal implications for the use of big data in the transboundary water context? The article will illuminate this question as a political issue that may result in different scenarios, with the possibility that all nations decide to use big data in the transboundary water context proposed as the most likely outcome. As a result, this article will call for new treaty provisions to address technological developments and big data’s inclusion in international water agreements and transboundary water treaties.
Rivers are important to Asia. The Amu Darya, Brahmaputra, Ganges, Indus, Irrawaddy, Mekong, Salween, Tarim, Yangtze and Yellow are the continent’s cradles of civilization. Much of Asia’s population and economy are clustered there. Yet, climate change, evident in their common source region, the Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH), threatens their upper watershed. The flow of these 10 mighty rivers that provide water to 16 countries could be affected. One in every 2.5 Asians live along these rivers and over USD4 trillion is generated in these 10 river basins, but there is little conversation on the threats to Asia’s Water Towers or water and climate risks faced by these rivers.
To catalyse such conversations, this report seeks to provide an overview of the challenges that are extremely critical to Asia. Since our economy runs on water, no water means no growth. So does Asia have enough water to develop? What about water for food and energy security? Will adding the wrong types of power accelerate climate change and how will this impact the water resources of the ten rivers? To what extent do the economies and water resources of the 16 countries in Asia depend on these ten river basins?
The results from our analyses are sobering. Water resources from these ten rivers are clearly vital to the social and economic development of continental Asia and the current water-intensive export-led growth model is not sustainable. Building on China Water Risk’s body of work on water-nomics, the report urges policy makers, businesses and investors to seriously start assessing water and climate risks for assets located along these rivers and to move development thinking beyond access to clean water toward rethinking development by wedding economic planning with water management.
Below is a list of research related to China’s transboundary water law and policy. This is in no
way a complete list but is aimed at assisting those researching the area in identifying new and
relevant research. As such, it will continue to grow and will be occasionally updated. Any
comments, questions, additions or corrections can be sent to the author at the above email
address.
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any references for this publication.