Dynamics of Transboundary Groundwater Management: Lessons from North America

Transboundary groundwater management in the North American countries of Canada, the United States of America, and Mexico is truly dynamic. Institutions such as the International Boundary and Water Commission (US-Mexico) and the International Joint Commission (US-Canada) were originally established to consider surface water. However, they have been adapted to consider groundwater, and the North American Free Trade Agreement, implemented in 1994, may prove to be applicable to groundwater, although in some cases may eventually prove inimical to the interests of border regions as the three countries attempt to manage their transboundary groundwater resources. These institutions, coupled with the ad hoc approach of individual stakeholder groups, illustrate that transboundary groundwater management is functioning quite well in North America. Eight case studies, involving both water quality and quantity, illustrate our premise. Seven of the studies describe very specific issues; the final one involves the groundwater resources of the Great Lakes basin of the US and Canada, and provides a brief discussion of some of the issues that might arise in this region.