What role for law in achieving transboundary drainage basin security? - the development and testing of the Legal Assessment Model (LAM) for transboundary watercourse states

摘要

The beneficial use of the world's transbounclary waters raises difficult issues for drainage basin security on most parts of the globe. International law provides that each transbounclary watercourse State is entitled to, and obliged to ensure, an "equitable and reasonable use" of these shared waters. The IWLRI developed and tested a Legal Assessment Model (LAM) through the work of interdisciplinary teams working in three different transbounclary situations - China (upstream), Mozambique (downstream) and Palestine (shared groundwater). The LAM provides a tool for transbounclary watercourse States to use in the preparation of their national water strategy for use at the national and international levels. The model should now be tested at the basin level, with a view to assisting to accomplish the peaceful and rational use of transbounclary waters in line with the governing rule of international law and thereby to facilitate the overall policy objective of drainage basin security.