Water security and access to clean water for people in the Red River Delta - Current situation and solutions

HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF LAW

LE QUYNH MAI

Major : Human rights law

Code : Pilot training major

MASTER'S THESIS IN LAW

Scientific supervisor : Dr. VU QUANG

HANOI – 2014

COMMITMENT

I hereby declare that this Thesis is my own research work. The results stated in this Thesis have not been published in any other work. The figures, examples and quotations in this Thesis ensure accuracy, reliability and honesty. I have completed all subjects and paid all financial obligations as prescribed by the Faculty of Law, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

So I write this Declaration to request the Faculty of Law to consider so that I can defend my Thesis.

Thank you very much!

GUARANTEE

Le Quynh Mai

Cover Page Pledge Table of Contents

List of abbreviations List of tables

INDEX

Page

INTRODUCTION 1

Chapter 1: SOME GENERAL THEORETICAL ISSUES ON WATER SECURITY AND THE RIGHT TO ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER 6

1.1. Water resources and water security 6

1.1.1. The importance of water resources 6

1.1.2. Some issues on environmental security and water security 8

1.1.3. Water environment change and human security 13

1.1.4. The relationship between water security and human rights 16

1.1.5. Challenges and risks of water security in the Asia region 18

1.2. Some theoretical issues on the right to access clean water 23

1.2.1. History of the right to water 24

1.2.2. Legal basis of people's right to access clean water 28

1.2.3. Contents of water use rights 36

1.2.4. Obligations of Member States 38

Chapter 2: CURRENT SITUATION OF WATER SECURITY AND PEOPLE'S RIGHT TO ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER

RED RIVER DELTA45

2.1. Current status of water environment security in Vietnam and water security

Water security in the Red River Delta 45

2.1.1. Current status of water environmental security in Vietnam 45

2.1.2. Current status of water security in the Red River Delta 52

2.1.3. Issues affecting water security in the delta

Red River 54

2.2. The right to access clean water for people in the river delta

Pink: Accessibility, Sustainability and Equity 56

2.2.1. Accessibility 56

2.2.2. Sustainability 62

2.2.3. Fairness 65

Chapter 3: SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE AND ENHANCE THE MECHANISM TO ENSURE WATER SECURITY AND ACCESS TO WATER

CLEANLINESS OF THE RED RIVER DELTA PEOPLE 68

3.1. International integration and cooperation on environmental protection 68

3.1.1. International integration on environmental protection 69

3.1.2. International cooperation in the use of water resources in basins

international rivers and ensuring the implementation of rights 70

3.2. Solutions for effective and sustainable management and use of water resources

Red River Delta from the right approach to clean water 71

3.2.1. Perfecting the institutional system to ensure human rights to the environment 71

3.2.2. Strengthen coordination, decentralization, and improve the capacity of management agencies.

ensuring efficiency in the use of water resources 74

3.2.3. Solutions for water resource management, limiting water resource degradation, controlling water pollution and treating pollution sources in the basin

Red River Delta 77

3.2.4. Work to improve the management of groundwater and surface water resources, ensuring rights

water use and reducing the tendency of over-exploitation 82

3.2.5. Ensuring community and equity in water management 85

3.2.6. Group of solutions related to some industries 87

CONCLUSION 89

LIST OF REFERENCES 91

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Abbreviations

Full meaning
AICHR	ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights ( ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights )
ASEAN	Association of Southeast Asian Nations ( Association of Southeast Asian Nations)
ICESCR	International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966 (International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Righs, 1966)
MRC	Mekong River Commission
RRDRWASS	Red River Delta Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project Supply and Sanitation)
UDHR	Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 (Universal Declatation of Human Rights, 1948)
Convention Committee	Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
WTO	World Trade Organization (The World Trade Organization) Organization)
WB	World Bank

Maybe you are interested!

LIST OF TABLES

Plate number

Table name	Page
Table 1.1:	Elements of human security system	14
Table 2.1:	Some basic characteristics of river systems main in Vietnam	46
Table 2.2:	Basic water-related health indicators and sanitation in Vietnam	59
Table 2.3:	Summary of results of water supply and sanitation implementation provinces as of August 2011	63

INTRODUCTION

1. Urgency of the topic

Water is a limited natural resource and a public good essential to life and health. A life in its true sense cannot be without the right to drinkable water. The Earth is estimated to have 1.4 billion km3 of water , but excluding salt water, frozen water and water deep underground that cannot be exploited, only 0.75% remains available to humans. That 0.75% is unevenly distributed. Clean water is not a resource for everyone because 11% (about 783 million people) still do not have access to it.

access to safe water. In addition, there is a large difference between rural and urban areas. About 96% of the urban population has access to quality water compared to 81% of rural areas.

It is undeniable that the world's water security is being threatened by the impact of climate change. Significantly reduced rainfall, rivers and lakes drying up are common situations in many areas. And it is predicted that water will be the "green gold" of the future and instead of being the cause of war, because of the essential nature of water, countries need more cooperation. The birth of the Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses, adopted by the 41st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in 1997, for the first time, comprehensively regulates the relations between countries in the field of using international watercourses, contributing to ensuring water security for countries.

Recognizing the importance of access to clean water, after more than 15 years of debate, on July 28, 2010, the United Nations General Assembly voted to recognize the right to access to clean water and hygienic living conditions as one of the fundamental human rights, standing alone, independent of other fundamental rights, although the recognition was quite late.

In Vietnam, the depletion of water resources in river systems, downstream reservoirs nationwide and groundwater in many regions is increasingly occurring.

serious. In addition to the objective causes due to the natural evolution of water resources, due to climate and hydrological conditions, due to the impact of climate change, there are also human impacts, such as overexploitation, wasteful use, pollution... Clean water is increasingly scarce. The Red River Delta is no exception to this rule. With the goal of 85% of the rural population and 95% of the urban population using hygienic water by 2015, aiming for 100% of the population using clean water by 2020, ensuring water security as well as the issue of people's right to access clean water in Vietnam in general and the Red River Delta in particular need to be fully and systematically recognized and is very necessary in the current period.

For the above reasons, the author chose the topic " Water security and access to clean water of people in the Red River Delta - current situation and solutions" for his thesis.

2. Research situation

The issue of water security and the use of clean water in the Red River Delta is not a new issue in Vietnam, but it is currently a new issue in legal science, especially in relation to the field of human rights. The issue of water security is focused on by Vietnamese scientists from the perspective of irrigation and sustainable development. The right to access clean water is also only studied by Vietnamese jurists as a small part of economic, social and cultural rights in monographs and journals. Each author studies and exploits water security and the right to access clean water from many of his own aspects. Typical works include:

The article “Deterioration of water resources and the risk of water insecurity in Vietnam” by author Le Bac Huynh, 2013, posted on the website of the Department of Water Resources Management – Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment . The article mentioned the current state of water security in Vietnam from the perspective of sustainable development.

Research by John Scanlon, Angela Cassar and Noémi Nemes on the topic “Is Water a Human Right?” in the Environmental Law program of the Organization