The Rio Grande River, known in Mexico as the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Originating in Colorado in the U.S., the Rio Grande flows over 3,000 kilometers to the Gulf of Mexico. Its basin covers an area over 500,000 square kilometers. Governing such an important transboundary water system poses a multitude of issues, and the most recent treaty guiding such efforts is now almost 80 years old. Regina Buono and Gabriel Eckstein discuss here the big challenges facing the Rio Grande/Río Bravo Basin, and how effective the current gov ..read more

This essay is written by Gabriel Eckstein, Professor of Law at Texas A&M University, director of the TAMU Law Program in Energy, Environmental, and Natural Resources Systems, and director of the International Water Law Project. He can be reached at gabrieleckstein [at] law.tamu.edu. On 22nd November 2021, in the case of Mississippi v. Tennessee, the Supreme Court of […] The post U.S. Supreme Court Issues Decision in First Ever Dispute Over Interstate Groundwater – Implications for International Law appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

This article examines treaty flexibility and climate change adaptation in the context of the Nile Basin, with special emphasis on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). The post Governing Shared Watercourses Under Climatic Uncertainty: The Case of the Nile Basin appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

Disagreements over the management and allocation of transboundary freshwater resources have become increasingly prominent in international relations ... AJIL Unbound by Symposium, a publication of the American Society for International Law, recently commissioned a series of articles on Interstate Disputes Over Water Rights. The post AJIL Unbound Symposium on Interstate Disputes Over Water Rights appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

For the past five years, Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt have negotiated the filling and annual operation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (“GERD”), but failed to strike a deal acceptable to them all. The post Sink or Swim: Alternatives for Unlocking the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Dispute appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

The book “International Law and Transboundary Aquifers” takes on this multiple challenge by framing the narrative around a practical scenario. One where two countries acknowledge the existence of a transboundary aquifer that straddles both their borders, and where both nations decide that they wish to manage it together and explore whether there are any rules that they can rely upon to base their cooperation on. The post New Book on “International Law and Transboundary Aquifers” by Francesco Sindico appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

The fate of the Mesopotamian Marshes of Iraq provides us with a case study on the functional deficits of the existing body of international water law in managing conflict over transboundary watercourses. This monograph argues that international collaboration over transboundary watercourses is imperative for maintaining peace and stability and should force us into thinking of new ways to address these newly emerging and growing challenges in the field. The post The Ilisu Dam and its Impact on the Mesopotamian Marshes of Iraq: Implications for the Future Directions of International Water Law app ..read more

The following essay by Dr. Susanne Schmeier, Associate Professor at IHE Delft, summarizes her recent article entitled “Prior notification of planned measures: A response to the no-harm dilemma?“, which appeared in the journal International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics. Dr. Schmeier can be reached at s.schmeier [at] un-ihe.org. Disagreements over whether a certain infrastructure […] The post The principle of prior notification – An instrument of implementing international water law and ensuring cooperative water diplomacy appeared first on International Water Law Projec ..read more

The following essay is by Dr. Pilar Carolina Villar, Professor at Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP). She can be reached at pcvillar [at] gmail.com. The Agreement on the Guarani Aquifer (Portuguese, Spanish, English unofficial), ratified by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, will enter into force on November 26, 2020. After a lengthy waiting process, […] The post The Agreement on the Guarani Aquifer enters into force: what changes now? appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more

The following essay by Dr. Zeray Yihdego and Julie Gibson is a summary of their recently published monograph (under the same title), which appears in Vol. 5(3) 2020, pp. 3-90 of Brill Research Perspectives in International Water Law.  Dr. Yihdego is Professor and Chair of Public International Law at the School of Law, University of Aberdeen. He can […] The post Implementing International Watercourses Law through the WEF Nexus and SDGs: an Integrated Approach Illustrated in the Zambezi River Basin appeared first on International Water Law Project Blog ..read more