|
|
Biblioteca virtual del PHI >
IHP-LAC Virtual Library >
Books >
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/472
|
| Title: | UNESCO/OAS ISARM AMERICAS PROGRAM LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THE TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFER SYSTEMS OF THE AMERICAS |
| Authors: | Programa UNESCO-OEA ISARM Américas |
| Keywords: | UNESCO/OAS ISARM AMERICAS PROGRAM TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFERS OF THE AMERICAS
LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK IN THE MANAGEMENT OF THE TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFER SYSTEMS OF THE AMERICAS |
| Issue Date: | 2-Jun-2009 |
| Series/Report no.: | 2 |
| Abstract: | The global Program “Internationally Shared Aquifer Resources Management – ISARM” was
launched during the 14th
Session of the Intergovernmental Council of the International
Hydrological Programme (IHP) of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO), in June, 2000, in cooperation with other international organizations,
including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United
Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the United Nations Economic and
Social Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA), and the International Association of
Hydrogeologists (IAH).
The program is aimed to promote the knowledge on transboundary water resources and
cooperation among the countries that share the same resource, in order to reach consensus in
the legal, institutional, socioeconomic, scientific, and environmental aspects. Another
important target of the ISARM Program is that of identifying case studies of relevant interest
for the Member States.
The UNESCO/OAS ISARM Americas Program is the regional initiative of the UNESCO-IHP
ISARM Program that is being implemented at a worldwide level. Its coordination is a joint
responsibility of the International Hydrological Programme for Latin America and the
Caribbean of UNESCO (IHP-LAC) and the Department of Sustainable Development –
formerly Office for Sustainable Development and the Environment-- of the Organization of
American States (DSD/OAS).
The goals of the UNESCO/OAS ISARM Americas Programme comprise the development of
an inventory of transboundary aquifers of the Americas, including a compilation of the
hydrogeological features and present use of such shared resources and awareness efforts
regarding the legal and institutional aspects related to the transboundary groundwaters in the
participant nations. |
| Description: | During the Third Coordination Workshop, held in São Paulo, Brazil, in 2005, upon
conclusion of Phase I “Inventory of the Transboundary Aquifers of the Americas”, the
representatives of the Member States agreed to start Phase II, “Legal and Institutional Aspects
of the Groundwaters in the Americas”, in 2006, which should include a diagnosis of the
existing aquifer-related legal and institutional framework.
In order to respond to such request, a questionnaire was structured by a group of legal experts
coordinated by Raya Stephan (UNESCO-IHP), with the participation of Claudia de Windt
(DSD/OAS), Stefano Burchi and Kerstin Mechlem (FAO), Marcella Nanni (Water
Legislation Specialist), Gabriel Eckstein (TTU, Texas, USA), Patricia Abad (IDEA,
Paraguay), and Lilian del Castillo-Laborde (University of Buenos Aires, Argentina).
The objective of the questionnaire consisted of gathering the legal and institutional
information available in the countries of the Americas on groundwater resources and
transboundary aquifers. The questionnaire was circulated in 2006, and was completed with
very detailed information by almost all of the ISARM Americas Programme participants. The
information was subsequently analyzed by the group of experts and presented at the Fourth
Workshop, in El Salvador, in 2006. During this event, a synthesis was presented on the water
resources legislation and the institutional frameworks of the Member States participating in
the UNESCO/OAS ISARM Americas Program.
In conjunction with the above, the countries already having joint legal mechanisms,
international agreements and/or cooperation frameworks, were identified. During the
Workshop in El Salvador, it was observed that the countries of the region have surface water
and groundwater laws, and in general the institutional frameworks are largely complex, often
with conflicting roles and overlapping responsibilities.
Accordingly, this book focuses on the integration of the information included in the first
volume of the UNESCO/OAS ISARM Americas Programme, “Transboundary Aquifers in the
Americas. Preliminary Assessment”, with the legal and institutional aspects related to
transboundary aquifer resources in the Americas. |
| URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/472 |
| Appears in Collections: | Books
|
Files in This Item:
| File |
Description |
Size | Format |
|---|
| ISARM Phase II - Legal and Institutional Framework in Management of Transboundary Aquifers.pdf | | 745Kb | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
|
All items in PHI Virtual Library are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved.
|
