Integrated Joint Management Agreements of Mekong River Basin Riparians
| Geolocation: | 18° 17' 47.094", 103° 56' 0.9352" |
|---|---|
| Total Population | 1010,000,000 millionmillion |
| Total Area | 787,800787,800 km² 304,169.58 mi² km2 |
| Climate Descriptors | Moist tropical (Köppen A-type), Humid mid-latitude (Köppen C-type), Moist |
| Predominent Land Use Descriptors | agricultural- cropland and pasture, industrial use, urban- high density |
| Important Uses of Water | Agriculture or Irrigation, Domestic/Urban Supply, Hydropower Generation |
Summary
The Mekong is the seventh largest river in the world in terms of discharge (tenth in length), rising in China, then flowing 4200 kilometers through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and finally through the extensive delta in Vietnam into the South China Sea. It is also both the first successful application of comprehensive approach to planning development of an international river and, at the same time, is one of the least developed major rivers in the world, in part because of difficulties inherent in implementing joint management between these the diverse riparians. In 1947, the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) was created to help with the development of Southeast Asia. A 1952 ECAFE study, undertaken with the cooperation of the four lower riparians - Cambodia , Laos , Thailand, Vietnam - noted the Mekong 's particular potential for hydroelectric and irrigation development. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation performed a report on planning and development on the lower basin in 1955-56, which urged joint management in developing the river, to which the four lower riparians agreed. When the report was presented in the tenth-anniversary meeting of ECAFE in Bangkok in March 1957, representatives from the four lower riparian states themselves adopted resolution calling for further study.
More recently, however, the liberalization of China’s economy, population growth, demand for increased agriculture yields, growing household demand of water for consumption and sanitation, and shortages of electricity has incited Chinese officials to look to the potential of the Mekong's Upper Basin. This unilateral development project alone would have large implications for the downstream riparian states. In the absence of basin-wide consensus and cooperation, these unilateral developments have the potential to make the hydropolitics in the Mekong basin much more contentious. [1]
Natural, Historic, Economic, Regional, and Political Framework
Figure 1. Map of the Mekong River Basin [2]
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- ^ Elhance, A. P. (1999). Hydropolitics in the 3rd World, Conflict and Cooperation in International River Basins. Washington DC: United States Institute of Peace.
- ^ Product of the Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database, Department of Geosciences, Oregon State University. Additional information about the TFDD can be found at: <http://www.transboundarywaters.orst.edu.
