Challenges to International Waters Regional Assessments in a Global Perspective

Clean water and the many products and services of aquatic ecosystems are necessities for human welfare. Water connects human societies and ecological systems by providing food and energy. The hydrological cycle maintains the health and stimulates the productivity and diversity of all ecosystems.

Wherever rivers, lakes and aquifers, as well as coastal current systems and marine fish stocks, are shared by two or more nations, these transboundary resources are interlinked by a complex web of environmental, political, economic and security interdependencies. Throughout history, while water has generally been shared peacefully, competition for scarce water resources can invoke conflict between nations sharing international waters. Today, global trade, migration and tourism, as well as global climate change, have created worldwide dimensions to many water related issues.

Over the past 20 years, the international community has increasingly recognised and asserted the urgent need for concerted actions to reverse the negative societal trends that adversely affect the world’s aquatic systems and to achieve sustainability in the use of water resources. Short-term commercial interests are often prioritised over long-term sustainable development. is is due to the false assumption that environmental protection and sustainability can only be achieved at the expense of economic development and social well-being. On the contrary, by investing in environmental improvements significant economic returns can be achieved through, for example, increased ecosystem and resource productivity, improvements in public health and poverty alleviation. Sustainable development is only possible by enhancing environmental management.

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