What rules apply to transboundary aquifers?
The UN Convention on the Law of Non-navigational uses (1997) covered groundwater in a very limited way. Ninteen articles on the law of transboundary aquifers have come in to fill this gap. They were drafted by a team of hydrogeologists and lawyers drawn from UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme (IHP) and the UN International Law Commission. The 6th Committtee of UN General Assembly endorsed the articles and adopted a resolution on the Law of Transboundary Aquifers on Friday, 14 November 2008. The articles have been annexed to a UN resolution, which recommends that the States concerned make appropriate bilateral or regional arrangements for managing their transboundary aquifers on the basis of the principles enunciated in the articles. These principles include States cooperating to prevent and control pollution of their shared aquifers. In view of the importance of these ‘invisible resources’, States are also invited to consider the elaboration of a convention on the basis of t
