ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates the evolution of international legal rules pertaining to the development, use, protection and conservation of transboundary water resources, starting with the first issues that have been the subject of international regulation, i.e., the demarcation of boundaries on international rivers and navigation. It then focuses on the non-navigational uses of international water resources, to examine state practice as it translates into universally applicable substantive and procedural rules. In particular, it dwells on the principle of equitable and reasonable utilization, on the obligation of states not to cause significant harm and on the general obligation to cooperate, and on their implications from the procedural viewpoint. Furthermore, it considers the most recent developments of international environmental law as they apply to transboundary water resources and are progressively absorbed into international agreements. Finally, it looks into the extent to which the right to water may be regarded as a self-standing human right.
