Both the Mekong and Amur rivers are important international rivers in Asia. The Amur River is the world's eighth longest river with a length of 4,400km. It supports more fish species than any other Russian river with over 120 species. The Mekong River has long been viewed as the foundation of economic growth and prosperity in much of Southeast Asia. Scientists believe that there are over 1300 distinct species of fish in the Mekong River and its tributaries, making it second in the world only to the Amazon in fish diversity.

China’s rapidly growing economy and river development plans exert enormous environmental pressure on both rivers, but lack of accurate information from China and insufficient engagement with stakeholders in China have hampered efforts to develop integrated river basin management initiatives in both river basins.

This project will increase input from China into regional IRBM (integrated river basin management). IRBM is an approach to river basin management that promotes better governance of water resources, ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation, and environment management through information sharing, demonstration and public participation. The project will encourage IRBM efforts for the Mekong and Amur rivers, and begin to engage the Chinese government on IRBM issues.

Objective

To establish partnerships with like-minded organizations (e.g., research/academic organizations, other NGOs, appropriate government agencies) in promoting IRBM approaches in China and to provide information and assistance to the Mekong and Amur river basin programmes that are run by the Indochina and Russian Far East offices of WWF, respectively.

Project activities:

(1) Collect information on development plans in both river basins, to share with the WWF Russian Far East and Indochina offices;

(2) Promote the IRBM vision to the key stakeholders in the upper reaches of the Mekong river and the Chinese side of the Amur river through (a) organizing stakeholders workshops in Kunming and in Harbin for the Mekong and Amur river; and (b) developing partnerships with key stakeholders

(2) Engage the Chinese Government on river basin management issues. We will seek to use the newly formed Task Force on IRBM (of the China Council for Intl Cooperation on Environment and Development) to promote IRBM generally, and in the Mekong and Amur basins specifically.

Current status

This project was launched in November 2002, and projects activities are in the implementation stages.

Partners

WWF Russian Far East Office, Indochina Office, Thailand, Vietnam
Task Force on Integrated River Basin Management of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED)
Ministry of Water Resources
State Forestry Administration
State Environment Protection Agency
Yunnan Provincial Government for the Mekong River
Heilongjiang Provincial Government for the Amur River
Songhuajiang-Liaohe River Commission
Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Research Centre for International Rivers, Yunnan University
China Northeast Forestry University
Chinese NGOs, such as Green Rivers, Green Watershed, etc
UNEP for the Amur River

Donor

DGIS through WWF International Living Water Programme