Water and Conflict

Water resources have rarely, if ever, been the sole source of violent conflict or war. But this fact has led some international security experts to ignore or belittle the complex and real relationships between water and security. In fact, there is a long and highly informative history of conflicts and tensions over water resources, the use of water systems as weapons during war, and the targeting of water systems during conflicts caused by other factors. To learn more about water and violent conflict, select from the following resources:

Water Conflict Chronology
In an ongoing effort to understand the connections between water resources, water systems, and international security and conflict, the Pacific Institute initiated a project in the late 1980s to track and categorize events related to water and conflict. Read more …

Water Conflict Bibliography
To aid those studying the role of water in conflict, the Pacific Institute maintains an online, searchable bibliography on water and conflict. The Water and Conflict Bibliography was funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York with additional support from the New Land Foundation and the general fund of the Pacific Institute. Oregon State University's Transboundary Freshwater Dispute project also contributed to the project. Explore the Bibliography...