הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר FIG WORKING WEEK HELSINKI May 2017 www. mapi. gov. il The Influence of Changes in Rivers on International and Cadastral Boundaries Dr Haim SREBRO Former Director General of the Survey of Israel

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר International and Cadastral Boundaries www. mapi. gov. il International boundaries define the territorial range of state sovereignty. Cadastral boundaries delimit ownership rights and rights of use. The absence of clear land boundaries contributes to uncertainty and to friction between owners and claimers of rights. Disputes between states may lead to territorial confrontation. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Boundaries should be defined accurately andwww. mapi. gov. il unequivocally, and they should be steady along time. They should be documented for maintenance and reconstruction if required. Boundaries in rivers In the past rivers used to be natural barriers defending tribes and peoples from invaders. Boundaries in rivers are natural, easy to choose and save the cost of demarcation. These were good reasons for colonial powers to define many boundaries between colonies in rivers. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries (3 )

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר www. mapi. gov. il One third of world boundaries are in rivers, along 72, 000 km. The longest follows the Rio Grande between the USA and Mexico along 2, 000 km. A river is a natural dynamic phenomenon. Its volume and velocity change continuously, as well as the water level and the width. Unsteadiness of its course causes along time unsteadiness of a boundary line in the river. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Boundaries in rivers are not steady www. mapi. gov. il Boundaries in rivers are considered unsteady boundaries on land, as well as boundaries in lakes, on glaciers and on unstable tectonic ground, but they are much more widespread. River waters carry soil and silt which settles on the river bed and on its banks. When the stream is powerful the water erodes the river banks causing the river to change its course. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Boundary agreements in rivers www. mapi. gov. il Boundary agreements in rivers are not homogeneous regarding the boundary line when the river changes Some determine that the boundary follows natural and gradual changes. Others leave the boundary unchanged despite the changes in the river. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bound

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Main projections of the changes www. mapi. gov. il If the boundary line follows the river changes then the boundary is not stable. This may cause conflicts between states because national lands are transferred to another state. In case of land boundaries the river may transfer valuable cultivated lands. If the boundary line does not follow the changes, problems of accessibility to the river and rights of use arise. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The maim issues of river boundaries www. mapi. gov. il - Where to delimit the boundary line? In the centre? Along the thalweg? Along one of the banks? - Will the boundary line follow changes in the river? - How to arrange rights of use along the river? The rules regarding rights along boundaries have developed during thousands of years, especially regarding land boundaries, since the Roman Law. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The location of the boundary in a river The common choice is between the geographic centre and the thalweg www. mapi. gov. il The British Land Act says: “the presumption is that the boundary follows the centre line of the water (ad medium filum aquae) so that each owner has half of the bed " In non-navigable boundary rivers the convention is to delimit the boundary line in the centre of the river (median line), in points that are equidistant from prominent points on the two banks. In navigable rivers the boundary follows the line of deep points – the thalweg Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The influence of river changes on the boundary line in the eyes of law www. mapi. gov. il The common doctrine in international law, rooted in the land laws of Roman Law, is that natural and gradual changes in a river (called alluvion/accretion) move the גבולות כינוס האגודה בנהרות boundary line to the new course of the river while a sudden change with a long lasting effect (called avulsion) does not change the boundary line. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The adoption of the doctrine www. mapi. gov. il The doctrine, recognizing that natural and gradual changes (alluvion/accretion) change the boundary line, while abrupt or artificial changes (avulsion) do not change the boundary line, took roots during the Middle Ages in land laws, and in the English Common Law. In 1715 the Dutch scholar Grotius expanded the doctrine to international boundaries. At the end of the 19 th century the US Supreme Court adopted it in its decisions regarding river boundaries between US states. It was also reflected in the 1911 US-Mexico Arbitration regarding the Rio Grande. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Is there an obligatory law? www. mapi. gov. il In spite of the fact that the doctrine of accretion took roots, especially in land boundaries, an international convention adopting such doctrine has not been accepted. ICJ has not declared it to be obligatory, and it has not been defined as customary law. Nevertheless, it is a common option that states prefer to choose as a result of many precedents. In addition to this option there is the option of fixing the boundary line and taking care of the case that the river changes by arranging rights under separate agreements. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Man made changes as a basis for fixing the www. mapi. gov. il boundary line The current situation is that population growth and • global warming lead to intensive water exploitation, including large construction of hydrological projects which change the natural behavior of rivers. Following the traditional perception, these artificial • changes require fixing the original boundary line in case the course of the river changes. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bo

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Fixing a boundary line in a river www. mapi. gov. il The two main methods: Fixing the river bed by a concrete canal and thus enforcing the stream (like in the Rio Grande case). This proved itself to be harmful to the environment. Fixing the boundary by coordinates. Satellite surveying like GPS made this option easy to implement. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The Israel-Jordan International Boundary follows the www. mapi. gov. il center of the Jordan and Yarmouk Rivers Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The Naharayim dam and basin were constructed in the years www. mapi. gov. il 1927 -1932 for a hydro-electric power station, not changing the international boundary כינוס האגודה הגאוגרפית 31 -51 בדצמבר Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries 2015

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר In the 1939 land settlement field sheet the international boundary is marked in the www. mapi. gov. il center of the Yarmouk River before the artificial construction of the dam. 20 גבולות בדצמבר In the 1944 British map the boundary is marked in the rivers except the Naharayim Basin (17) Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bo

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Aerial Photograph 1944 Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries www. mapi. gov. il

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר British Map 1941 www. mapi. gov. il Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Israeli map 1953 showing the armistice line and the international mandatory line. www. mapi. gov. il Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The boundary line in the 1994 peace agreement following the updated river bed Dr. Haim SREBRO www. mapi. gov. il River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The river beds on a 2014 orthophoto www. mapi. gov. il Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Traces of old river beds in a 2010 aerial photograph www. mapi. gov. il Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bound

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר The decision of the High Commissioner www. mapi. gov. il A great flood in the Jordan River in 1927 transferred a large area from Palestine to Trans-Jordan. Despite the common rule that an abrupt change in the river should not change the boundary line, the HC decided out of convenience that the boundary will follow the changes in the River Jordan. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

Boundary changes following chages in the Jordan River הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר 2014 - 1994 – 1962 – 1930 s www. mapi. gov. il

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Changes in the Jordan River course www. mapi. gov. il

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 81 דצמבר 6002 www. mapi. gov. il Changes in the river beds

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר NSDI 2014 - / peace agreement 1994 - / bloc plans 1930 www. mapi. gov. il 1941 -map Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bou

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Fixing and documenting the line in the Yarmouk in 2000 (29) Dr. Haim SREBRO www. mapi. gov. il River Bounda

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר Conclusions www. mapi. gov. il - Until the 1960 s the changes in the bed of the Jordan River were natural. Part of them were caused by sudden floods that are not considered as changing the boundary line. - Large water projects have changed artificially the flow of the rivers and their channels. The lower Yarmouk stopped to behave like a natural river because of the Naharayim and Adassiya dams and because of the Ghor Canal. Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר - The water volume of the Jordan River has dropped www. mapi. gov. il from 1200 -1500 mc/h to 120 mc/h due to the cut down of its main water sources - Lake Kinneret and the Yarmouk River. Silt from the Yarmouk stopped to settle along the water bed of the Jordan River and the farmers on both sides stabilize the banks, and thus reducing potential winding in the river bed. - The changes in the Jordan River have dropped from hundreds meters in the past to 10 -15 meters since 1994 Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר www. mapi. gov. il Recommendation Considering the man-made influence on the situation and the limited practical influence of potential stabilization we recommend to stabilize the international boundary line in the two rivers by mutual agreement and then to adjust accordingly the cadastral boundaries Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר www. mapi. gov. il Thanks to the Survey of Israel for the help with the illustrations. All the rights to the maps are reserved by the Survey of Israel Dr. Haim SREBRO River Boundaries

הכנס השנתי של האגודה הגאוגרפית הישראלית 2006 81 דצמבר www. mapi. gov. il Thank you Dr. Haim SREBRO River Bo