15.5 TRANSBOUNDARY ISSUES

Transport and navigation issues arise mainly because activities undertaken in upstream areas can cause physical, chemical, biological and socio-economic changes downstream. Large-scale removal of obstructions or placement of dams or irrigation systems to control seasonal water flow may change water flow patterns in downstream jurisdictions. Dredging, port activity and increased boat traffic may cause a degradation of water quality downstream.

Changes in the quantity and quality of water caused by navigational improvement or port development in upstream areas may seriously affect human activity in downstream jurisdictions, including production of fish and other species. Furthermore, cross-border migration of some species, such as the giant catfish, means that removal of or damage to critical fish habitat in one jurisdiction has potential to seriously alter the amount and type of fish caught in a different jurisdiction.

The physical, chemical and biological transboundary changes may in turn affect the livelihood of people in downstream areas especially those dependent on fishing, agriculture and seasonal flow conditions. The linkages between transportation, navigation and river ecology are important considerations, especially given the transboundary nature of transportation activities in the basin.