Question

How do rivers become a source of conflict between states?

Answer 1

Hint: Rivers are shared resources with no ownership. A single river may flow through many states. Construction of dams might reduce the amount of water downstream.

Complete Answer:
Rivers are a very valuable natural resource. They are a steady and easy source of sweet-water which is then purified and supplied to domestic and industrial sites. They are also a source of water for irrigation, for generating electricity and for various other purposes. Since rivers flow through many states, the states often have conflict over sharing the amount of water in the rivers. We shall see below the main reason for these inter state conflicts over rivers.

1. One of the primary reasons for water resources related conflict is over the supply-demand disparity. The freshwater supply is fixed, and highly unlikely to increase. So states using the water from the same river often fight over who gets to use how much of the water.

2. Another major factor is the construction of dams for hydro electric power generation. Dams are built over rivers, but a minimum amount of force of water current is necessary for it to function. Oftentimes, the dams which are downstream do not get as much water as the dams upstream which leads to conflicts.

3. Related to the building of dams, there is another major issue of water reservoirs. Water is collected in reservoirs before being let out through the dams in a controlled amount. States often have conflict because one state holds up too much water in their reservoir leading to low water supply in the next.

4. Other than these main socio-economic reasons, there are various other reasons like fishing, agriculture, recreation and tourism, manufacturing etc that depend on river and river water. This might lead to conflicts. Water disputes are very difficult to solve as local and international law, environmental concerns, human rights questions and commercial interests make it very complex.

Note: Water conflicts appear throughout history which shows that it isn't a problem of the modern age. Lester R. Brown had said in a Stockholm Water Conference that "future wars in the Middle East are more likely to be fought over water than over oil". Water resources related conflict and violence have been recorded as far as 6,000 years. Recent incidents of human rights travesty like the Rwandan genocide or the war in Sudanese Darfur, have also been traced back to be linked to water disputes.