The issue of water on this planet is often present in many discussions about the
environment. The way of using water resources, who uses them and to which end,
are issues that deserve special attention as, since the Stockholm Conference of 1972
and hence through these last four decades, these resources are treated in a special
manner, taken as finite and endowed of economical value.
In this context, the management of water resources in the Amazon Basin begins to
be guided by the principles of environmental law, which state that water should be an
accessible natural resource to all peoples in order to supply their vital needs.
Likewise, water resource policies are moving towards the principle that users should
have direct participation on protection, conservation, and recovery of water
resources. Furthermore, these policies take into account principles of precaution and
prevention in order to keep water resources at acceptable supply levels and standard
of quality. In order to promote the direct application of water policies, Amazon Basin
countries have produced laws that incorporate some sort of management
instruments. A look into the legal realm of water resources of Brazil, Venezuela,
Peru, Colombia, Equador, Bolivia, and Guiana shows that in the Amazon Basin there
are diverse water resource management systems, fact that generates management
conflicts related to the homogeneity of decision and results.
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