Governing a shared hidden resource: a review of governance mechanisms for transboundary groundwater security

This research paper reviews literature on groundwater management, water security, international water law, and international water governance to propose recommendations for securing the nearly 600 transboundary aquifers globally.

• Global usable groundwater levels have decreased rapidly in recent decades due to climate change, urbanization, and mismanagement factors such as under-regulation, contamination, and overpumping.
• The authors propose five specific requirements for groundwater governance in transboundary contexts: the use of flexible, context-specific international mechanisms; the continuous acquisition of groundwater data; the prioritization of pollution prevention and the precautionary principle; the integration of land, surface, and subsurface water governance where appropriate; and the expansion of institutional capacity for multinational or binational actors.
• Management is specifically difficult for the approximately 600 aquifers that cross international political borders.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2025). Governing a shared hidden resource: a review of governance mechanisms for transboundary groundwater security. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/governing-a-shared-hidden-resource-a-review-of-governance-mechanisms-for-transboundary-groundwater-security/

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Governing a shared hidden resource: a review of governance mechanisms for transboundary groundwater security. 2025. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/governing-a-shared-hidden-resource-a-review-of-governance-mechanisms-for-transboundary-groundwater-security/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Governing a shared hidden resource: a review of governance mechanisms for transboundary groundwater security |date=13 January 2025 |url=https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/governing-a-shared-hidden-resource-a-review-of-governance-mechanisms-for-transboundary-groundwater-security/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2025governing, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Governing a shared hidden resource: a review of governance mechanisms for transboundary groundwater security}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/governing-a-shared-hidden-resource-a-review-of-governance-mechanisms-for-transboundary-groundwater-security/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }