Another aspect is the overexploitation of water resources.
We will talk about this later
but there is a multiplication of water uses,
whether for irrigation, industrial means,
for energy production or other uses.
And there is a great appetite for water and its different uses.
So, it is overexploited and, at the same time, it is a
finite resource, of finite quantity, (it is not possible to create water)
and therefore the challenge is to exploit this resource in the best way possible.
I say that it is overexploited, but there is also another aspect that needs to be taken
into account. Very often, water is wasted.
This waste should also be kept in mind.
Often waste occurs because water facilities
are of poor quality or
there is a problem with the non-treatment of wastewater etc..
Well, international law needs to be concerned with how to best manage
this resource and minimise this waste.
I would also like to talk about another important aspect.
When we talk about water resources internationally,
we are very interested by international rivers, or what we
call international watercourses and international lakes.
And in this context, well, we soon realise just how many there are.
You may encounter different statistics
but very often you will hear that there are 280 international watercourses.
And these international watercourses, well, they need to be managed,
and it is essential that all the riparian countries
have access to the water.
They have to be managed because if you look at the studies,
we soon realise that a very large part of the world's population depends
on access to them.
Almost 40% of the world's population depend on access to these
transboundary water resources.
And here, too, international law
is concerned by these rivers, these international lakes.
I have not yet mentioned transboundary groundwaters,
but they also deserve to be mentioned as they need to be regulated at the international level.
And then, well, international law must take into account the
particularity of each international watercourse,
each international lake, or even each international underground body of water.
And that presents another challenge to international law.
So you see, these particularities
mean that international law requires very particular content.
I would also like to point out that international law, in order to take into account
these different aspects, has to exist at different levels.
The universal level - since rules are required for all States.
The regional level - since there may be regional distinctions
to be considered.
And the local level. When I talk about the local level, well,
this refers to all the agreements that relate to particular river basins.
So this first aspect refers the multi-levels,
the multi-levels of governance regulations.
When we talk about a river,
when we talk about groundwater
international water law must be applied but there
are also other bodies of norms which are very significant.
Here, I am thinking of international environmental law and
later, there is a section all about how international
environmental law contributes to the protection of transboundary waters.
I am also thinking about human rights.
You are going to see how the desire to protect
international watercourses for the benefit of mankind,
for all the human beings on the planet has increased in momentum.
And then there is international economic law, often
regarded as a poor relative
when it comes to international water law.
But international economic law also has a place. Think about
private and public investment. Not only for sanitation infrastructures but also
for the construction of canals or dams.
And then there is the whole issue of trade.
So this question may seem futuristic to you,
but increasingly, water transfers, from one
country to another or from one region to another are being considered.
So, you see, when I first introduced these different bodies of norms,
we recognised the need for a holistic approach.
By “holistic” I mean that it is important to appreciate that
international law needs to be taken into account in its entirety.
Likewise, we need to consider how international law can be created to ensure a good
level of protection for these resources, but also, we need to consider how to best apply the law.
And this presents another challenge for international law
in the field of water resources - how to implement this law to
ensure that every watercourse on the planet is adequately protected.
Then you realise (and here I will touch on the theory of
international law) that we are going to talk a lot about treaties.
But this is important. They are agreements between States, riparian States or
States of a region or member States of the international community.
But there are also watercourses which
don't benefit from a particular legal regime.
And in this context, in addition to the universal rule of treaties,
international custom plays a very important role.
And so we will talk about what is referred to
in international law, as the principles of international law
applicable to the management of international watercourses.