Abstract
AbstractThis article examines the international legitimacy of unilateral dam development in an international watercourse from the perspective of international water law. Drawing upon technical analysis over the Harirud River Basin, the article discusses probable negative impacts of unilateral dam development in Afghanistan on downstream Iran and Turkmenistan. Competing claims are analyzed to assess emerging transboundary damage under customary international water law. Applying these insights to the case study, this article explores how legal norms and principles can contribute to transboundary water cooperation. It investigates how equitable and reasonable utilization, as required by the United Nations Watercourse Convention, could be reached and whether current activities are in conformity with international norms. Based on this analysis and in the light of international customary law, the article questions the compatibility of unilateral control and capture of water resources in Afghanistan, particularly through the Salma Dam, with ‘equitable and reasonable utilization’ and ‘no significant harm’ rules. The article also argues that building the Salma Dam results in significant transboundary harm to downstream states. Hence, such harm could be considered as significant transboundary damage. Conclusions point to an understanding of water law as a form of institutional guidance in order to provide a transparent setting for transboundary water cooperation among riparian states.
Highlights
One of the key challenges for the 21st century is the sharing of international water resources
The contribution of international water law is investigated by examining the specific case of the Harirud/ Tejen River Basin, which is an international water basin shared between Afghanistan, in Tehran (Iran), and Turkmenistan
This article will argue that all riparian states have focused mainly on dam development to harness the water to relieve this pressure without respecting the water rights in the basin.[6]
Summary
The 1,124 kilometres (km) long Harirud River originates in the high mountains of Afghanistan over 3,000 metres above sea level. Frenken (ed.), ‘Irrigation in Central Asia in Figures: AQUASTAT Survey-2012’, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Water Reports, No 39, available at: http://www.fao.org/3/i3289e/i3289e.pdf. 65–81, at 67–8, available at: https://taa.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/ 10/ Paper2%20Virgo_Afghanistan_paper_11_24_06_final1.pdf. 23 S.K. Adhikary et al, ‘Simulating Impacts of EFR Consideration on Reservoir Operation Policy and Irrigation Management in the Hari Rod River Basin, Afghanistan’, 19th International Congress on Modelling and Simulation (MODSIM2011), Perth, WA (Australia), 12–16 Dec. 2011, available at: https://www.mssanz.org.au/modsim2011/I12/adhikary.pdf. In the Harirud Basin, irrigation networks are currently distributed along the river, mostly in the lower basin from Herat in Afghanistan to Serakhs in Iran and Turkmenistan. Favre & G.M. Kamal, Watershed ATLAS of Afghanistan (Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, 2004), pp.
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