Transboundary Aquifers: A Global Programme to Assess, Evaluate & Develop Policy

Ground Water, Vol. 43, No. 5, pp. 661-668, September-October 2005

8 Pages Posted: 13 Mar 2008

See all articles by Shammy Puri

Shammy Puri

International Association of Hydrogeologists; Centre for Sustainable Solutions in Practical Hydrogeology

Alice Aureli

UNESCO International Hydrological Programme

Abstract

Transboundary aquifers are as important a component of global water resource systems as are transboundary rivers; yet, their recognition in international water policy and legislation is very limited. Existing international conventions and agreements barely address aquifers and their resources. To rectify this deficiency, the International Association of Hydrogeologists and UNESCO's International Hydrological Programme have established the Internationally Shared (transboundary) Aquifer Resource Management (ISARM) Programme. This multiagency cooperative program has launched a number of global and regional initiatives. These are designed to delineate and analyze transboundary aquifer systems and to encourage riparian states to work cooperatively toward mutually beneficial and sustainable aquifer development. The agencies participating in ISARM include international and regional organizations (e.g., Organization of American States, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Food and Agriculture Organization, and South African Development Community). Using outputs of case studies, the ISARM Programme is building scientific, legal, environmental, socioeconomic, and institutional guidelines and recommendations to aid sharing nations in the management of their transboundary aquifers. Since its start in 2000, the program has completed inventories of transboundary aquifers in the Americas and Africa and several ISARM case studies have commenced.

Keywords: shared water resources, shared aquifers, transboundary aquifer, global inventory

Suggested Citation

Puri, Shammy and Puri, Shammy and Aureli, Alice, Transboundary Aquifers: A Global Programme to Assess, Evaluate & Develop Policy. Ground Water, Vol. 43, No. 5, pp. 661-668, September-October 2005, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1105354 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1105354

Shammy Puri (Contact Author)

International Association of Hydrogeologists ( email )

The Brook House
Drayton Rd
Dorchester on Thames, Oxon OX10 7PJ
United Kingdom

Centre for Sustainable Solutions in Practical Hydrogeology ( email )

The Brook House,
Drayton Road
Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire OX10 7PJ
United Kingdom
07775511097 (Phone)
OX10 7PJ (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.practicalhydrogeology.co.uk

Alice Aureli

UNESCO International Hydrological Programme ( email )

7, Place de Fontenoy
Paris 07 SP, 75352
France

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