Water management issues on the Tibetan plateau

Organised by the Senate’s International Information Group on Tibet, the conference on 3 December 2024 focused on water management on the Tibetan plateau, bringing together three speakers: Palmo Tenzin, researcher and advocacy officer for the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) in Germany, Dechen Palmo, environmental researcher at the Tibet Policy Institute in India and head of the Tibetan government in exile, and Tenzin Choekyi, researcher for the NGO Tibet Watch. This is a summary of the conference.

Although often considered a Chinese province, Tibet is in fact a country annexed by China in 1950. Since then, China has pursued a large-scale policy of erasing Tibetan identity in a number of ways: destroying monasteries, sending Tibetan children to boarding school to learn Mandarin, monopolising their natural resources, etc. Tibet is a water reservoir for the whole of China.

A veritable water reservoir for the whole of South-East Asia, Tibet is regularly referred to as ‘the third pole’, and plays a strategic role in the region’s water balance. An estimated 1.8 billion people depend on water from Tibet. Yet this region is one of the most vulnerable to global warming, and the massive construction of dams by China could have serious repercussions for all the countries in the region in the years to come.

Tibet and the dangers of climate change

Often referred to as the ‘water tower of Asia’, Tibet is the source of eight of Asia’s major rivers, including the Brahmaputra, Yangtze, Mekong and Indus.

These rivers are fed by Himalayan glaciers, which have been melting at an alarming rate for several years. Tibet is experiencing temperature rises 2 to 4 times faster than the rest of the planet, considerably speeding up the melting of the Himalayan glaciers. It is estimated that 75% of these glaciers will have disappeared by 2100.

While these glaciers provide water resources for consumption and agriculture for 1.8 billion people, their rapid melting is leading to unprecedented climatic disasters such as flash floods or, conversely, severe droughts, even during the rainy season.

This vulnerability to climate change is further exacerbated by the massive construction of hydraulic dams by China and the intensive exploitation of water resources in Tibet.

The multiple consequences of China’s damming of Tibet

The International Campaign for Tibet’s report Chinese Hydropower: damning Tibet’s culture, community and environment, published on Wednesday 4 December 2024, gives us an overview of the scale of China’s dam construction in Tibet.

Since 2000, the Chinese regime has launched the construction of 193 hydroelectric dams on the Tibetan plateau. These hydroelectric dams can fulfil 2 functions: storing water in a reservoir for deferred release, or diverting water using turbines. The conclusions of the ICT report reveal that their development has never been so important in terms of scale, scope and speed. In fact, 80% of the projects studied are mega-dams. More than half (59%) are still at the proposal stage (38%) or the preparation stage ( %). If these 193 dams were brought into operation simultaneously, Tibet would have a hydroelectric capacity of more than 270 GW, equivalent to Germany’s energy production in 2022.

The costs of these dams are extremely high, but the Chinese government chooses to ignore or even conceal them.

From an environmental point of view, these constructions are vulnerable to earthquakes, landslides and floods, even increasing the risk of these phenomena. Several earthquakes have already destroyed hydroelectric infrastructure, causing dozens of deaths and irreversible damage to the environment and biodiversity. Dams also increase the human footprint and methane pollution in fragile and isolated ecosystems. They degrade water quality and flow, disrupt aquatic life, affect soils and block nutrient flows downstream.

In human terms, the construction of these dams is forcing many Tibetans from their homes and lands. Studies show that 121,651 people have already been evicted since 2000, and the ICT report estimates that 1.2 million people will be evicted if the 193 hydroelectric dams are built. In addition, many religious sites will be abandoned or even destroyed to make way for these projects.

A small Tibetan monastery with destroyed foundations still standing on the road from Shigatse to Mount Everest in 2009

Although Tibet has considerable hydroelectric potential, Tibetans have no say in how their resources are used. It is the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Chinese energy companies who determine the exploitation of Tibetan energy and the distribution of costs and profits. In reality, the exploitation of Tibet’s water resources benefits the major Chinese cities almost exclusively, while disproportionately and irreversibly harming Tibetans and their environment.

Tibet’s water resources: a major geopolitical and strategic issue for China

The Chinese regime’s long-term objective is to turn Tibet into a powerful energy exporter, supplying not only central and eastern China but the whole of South-East Asia.

By controlling the Tibetan rivers, China is establishing itself as a world leader in the development of hydroelectricity, a strategic lever for increasing its regional and international influence. While China’s hydropower policy is essential to its industry, it also threatens food security in South-East Asian countries.

Xiaowan dam, Lancang River (Upper Mekong), China. © Guillaume Lacombe

The Mekong River is a prime example of the impact of dams on the countries of South-East Asia. This vital river provides water for around 60 million people, but the 11 dams built along the river by the Chinese government have led to a significant drop in water levels in the areas downstream from the dams. The consequences are irreversible: severe droughts even during the rainy season, a drop in fishing and aquaculture, etc. for the countries dependent on the Mekong, which are coming under increasing pressure from China.

According to Dechen Palmo, the countries of South-East Asia are currently dependent on China’s goodwill for their access to water. But as the situation worsens, they will soon be obliged to join forces to confront the Asian giant if they want to escape from this totally unequal balance of power. This imbalance could have disastrous consequences for the future stability of the region if the situation does not change quickly.

Fisherman in the Mekong Delta © Jean-Pierre Dalbéra

The unprecedented mobilisation of Tibetans for respect for their existence and their resources

Since February 2O24, demonstrations have been taking place in Tibet in opposition to the forthcoming construction of the Kamtok dam in Sichuan province. This mega-project will result in the expulsion of over 4,000 Tibetans from their villages and the destruction of 6 monasteries. Since the uprisings of 2008, which were violently repressed, and the 159 self-immolations of Tibetans that followed, protests in the region have become extremely rare. The current demonstrations therefore represent a strong act of resistance to the Chinese regime. Once again, the demonstrators have been severely repressed by the Chinese regime’s security forces. Videos have shown the seriousness of the situation: around twenty Tibetans, including elderly people and a dozen monks, were kneeling in front of CCP security forces, begging them to stop the construction of the dam, which would force them to flee. Many were arrested and some were beaten on suspicion of being the leaders of the demonstrations. Since then, military reinforcements have been sent in and no new images of the Tibetans concerned have been released.

While Tibetan exiles are fighting to raise the profile of their cause and alert the international community, many are wondering whether their action is having any real impact, given that there has been no real improvement and China is continuing with its construction projects. The law does not protect Tibetans but Chinese state-owned enterprises, and Tibetans continue to be arbitrarily arrested in their fight to denounce the illegal exploitation of Tibet’s water resources and the violations that ensue. The evidence they gather and disseminate on the internet and social networks is systematically censored.

If these dams are built, millions of people in Tibet and the rest of China will face catastrophic consequences in the years to come. Tibetans will be the first victims, but the people of mainland China will also feel the effects.

A woman carries a child in Barkhor, Tibet Autonomous Region © UNICEF-Palani Mohan

Possible cooperation?

Despite these challenges, and even if China is for the moment recalcitrant to cross-border governance, there is room for cooperation. Indeed, the IWRM approach could enable the water resources of Tibet to be shared equitably between the various countries of South-East Asia. As defined by the Global Water Partnership, ‘IWRM is a process that promotes the coordinated development and management of water, land and associated resources, with a view to maximising the resulting economic and social well-being in an equitable manner, without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems’[1].

This approach has already proved its worth in the management of the River Niger, which flows through 9 West African countries and stretches over 4,200km. Since 1964, the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) has brought together the states dependent on the river (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger and Nigeria) and coordinated water management policies with the aim of preventing conflicts and promoting socio-economic development. The various projects set up by the NBA also enable regional cooperation in the fight against drought, for access to drinking water, the preservation of fragile ecosystems, etc.

The challenges faced by NBA are very similar to those faced by the countries of Southeast Asia. The cooperation that these West African countries have been able to establish should therefore serve as an example for the creation of real cross-border governance between China and the countries of South-East Asia around the rivers that have their source in Tibet.

Recommendations from the speakers

Tibetans must be consulted on development projects, and their rights must be protected.
Renewable energies (solar and wind) should be favoured from now on, as they do not entail the environmental, climatic and social costs of hydroelectric power.
China should sign and accede to the 1997 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses, in order to guarantee the fundamental principles of equitable and reasonable utilization and non-detriment in water management.
China should also engage in multilateral forums on transboundary water policy to establish a mutually beneficial management architecture by signing water-sharing agreements and scientific data.
France and Europe must support the international organisations that can act as discussion forums for negotiating these agreements.
France and Europe must put pressure on China and highlight the harmful consequences of these constructions.

[1] Global Water Partnership, Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) Integrated Water Resources Management 2000, TAC Background Papers No. 4, 65p., 04-integrated-water-resources-management-2000-english.pdf

India Hauteville

India Hauteville holds a first Masters degree in International Politics from Sciences Po Bordeaux and is currently studying for a Masters degree in Integration and Change in the Mediterranean and the Middle East at Sciences Po Grenoble. She is the current assistant to the founder of Solidarités International, Mr Alain Boinet.

She is particularly interested in the Syrian conflict and is currently writing a dissertation on the relationship between humanitarian principles and the realities on the ground in Syria, using the NGO Solidarités International as a case study.

I invite you to read these interviews and articles published in the edition :

What are the challenges facing the humanitarian sector and what are the responses?

An interview with Alain Boinet.

These half-moon structures on barren soil were created in the village of Gobro, Niger. They are designed to conserve rainwater during the next rainfall, replenish the water table, and encourage the regrowth of vegetation. @ Fatoumata Diabate/Oxfam

Défis Humanitaires: How is the humanitarian sector faring today?

Alain Boinet: Despite its problems, the humanitarian sector is doing rather well, as it has continued to develop over the last 30 years. But it is now entering a period of uncertainty and turbulence. I believe that this is characterised by five major events.

The first challenge is the geopolitical tipping point we are experiencing, with the entry into a cycle of confrontation that is set to last. The second is not only the lack of financial resources to meet growing humanitarian needs, but above all the risk of a drop in humanitarian funding from institutions. The third risk is the politicisation of the humanitarian sector by governments and political players, but also by some humanitarian aid workers. A fourth challenge is the demographic explosion in sub-Saharan Africa, which is set to increase every year.

Finally, there is the end of the Western magisterium and the aspiration of many countries, like former empires, to assert themselves, to be recognised and to count in a multipolar world, what we call the global South.

Could you explain what you mean by geopolitical risks?

The Russian invasion of Ukraine on 22 February 2022 is a major turning point, the tipping point after the Cold War followed by a long period of multilateralism and simultaneously a round of observation and gestation of antagonisms.

Many nation states and former empires now believe they can settle their differences by force. This is true from the Ukraine along the line of confrontation with Russia which, in the west, runs from Poland to the Baltic States and Northern Europe and, in the east, towards Moldavia, Georgia and Armenia. Poland, which spends 4.2% of its GNI (gross national income) on defence, is in fact preparing for a possible war. And after the war with Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and with Hezbollah in Lebanon, it may well be Iran’s turn, with a view to reshaping a new regional balance.

© UNICEF/Kristina Pashkina. A school in Kharkiv, north-east Ukraine, is destroyed after intensive shelling.

And what can we say about the Indo-Pacific region, where a large number of countries are mobilising their military forces to prepare for a possible Chinese attack on Taiwan by the United States. Who wants to be surprised by another Pearl Harbour in Taiwan?

Let’s not forget that the need for humanitarian aid and its development have accompanied major conflicts or disasters that have provoked UN operations (former Yugoslavia, Tsunami, Haiti) or interventions by the United States and its allies (Iraq, Syria, Libya), a cycle that ended in Afghanistan. This period seems to be over and we are entering a new cycle, with perhaps 20 years of chaos ahead of us.

Finally, and this is just as decisive for the future of humanity, what can we say about systemic risks, such as climate change, the increasing scarcity of water and its pollution, the accelerated loss of biodiversity, plastic pollution and the spreading drought?

We could also mention global movements that will have an increasing impact on humanitarian aid: cybercrime, organised crime, migratory movements, forced displacement of populations. Here too, we are going to see a scissor effect between threats and solutions, which could result from the balance of power favoured by Donald Trump. And it’s not just ‘Make America great again’, it’s just as much ‘Make China, Turkey, Russia, Iran, India, South Africa great again’.

Do you have any examples of the decline in humanitarian funding?

In France, Official Development Assistance could be cut by €2 billion in the 2025 finance bill, and the humanitarian budget, which was supposed to be €1 billion, will be halved if nothing is done to limit the damage.

As far as the United Nations is concerned, the appeal to help 187.6 million people is worth 49 billion dollars this year. But in September 2024, the available budget was only 22.48 billion dollars! Since 2022, we have seen a significant erosion in funding. Will this continue as the UN and international law are weakened?

Feb 4, 2024. Gaza. OPT. Palestinian children carry empty containers as they line up for water provided by a Palestinian youth group, in the Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip. Ismael Abu Dayyah for UNOCHA

As far as the European Commission is concerned, we have hopes that at least the commitment of the previous Commission will be maintained. But we also have our fears as we wait to find out the level of the Multiannual Financial Framework that will be set in 2025 for the next 7 years. Economic difficulties, inflation, strong growth in defence budgets, political instability in France and Germany, which has cut its humanitarian budget by 52%, have all played their part. And then there’s the unknown in the United States, the biggest funder of Official Development Assistance and humanitarian aid.

In such a context, how will donors, companies and foundations behave?

How do you see this politicisation of humanitarian aid and its consequences?

In this new geopolitical cycle, the assertion of the sovereignty of nation states will certainly lead to increasing difficulties in accessing populations in danger and to a politicisation of relations with NGOs. Let’s not forget that many conflicts are civil wars and that the powers that be are likely to restrict the scope of International Humanitarian Law for humanitarian actors.

In the case of inter-state wars, the question of freedom of humanitarian action and funding will also arise more systematically. How will NGOs deal with these difficulties? Of course, this is not entirely new. But what could well change is a systematisation of constraints and a reduction, if not a breakdown, in funding, as well as a politicisation of the earmarking of available budgets.

The question we are therefore faced with is whether we should respond to this risk of politicisation of humanitarian action by States by politicising humanitarian aid workers, or whether we should instead continue to act within the framework of International Humanitarian Law by stubbornly and relentlessly implementing it in the field. Until now, humanitarians have denounced the politicisation of humanitarian aid by States as an obstacle to humanitarian aid and its impartiality. If NGOs were to politicize their mandate and activities, they would find themselves in the political arena, which would automatically restrict their capacity for action and access to populations.

Gaza is a dramatic and emblematic example of this. The debate is by turns factual, quantified, passionate and intensely confrontational. It is simply human when we live with the pogrom of 7 October 2023 in Israel and with the victims in Gaza for nearly 15 months, with almost 45,000 Gazans already killed, many of them civilians. Without relativising this terrifying tragedy, it is enlightening to compare the treatment of the conflict in Gaza with that applied in Sudan, which is also a humanitarian disaster, or in Ukraine with its countless victims and destruction.

I would like to add an observation that may come as a surprise if we forget both the experience and the reflection on war. War, which is a political process, has its own logic and autonomy that eludes many of the rules of peacetime. Democracies themselves come to use weapons of mass destruction to win, as we have seen during and since the Second World War. This is not an excuse, it’s not a justification, it’s just an observation.

I’ve heard it said that everything is political and that humanitarians should get used to it. But perhaps humanitarianism has reasons that politics doesn’t! The golden rule is the principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality. It is these principles, based on International Humanitarian Law, that must allow access to aid for populations in danger, despite the obstacles. Precisely, we are trying to extricate ourselves from politics in order to help threatened people and populations who, without help, would sooner or later succumb in large numbers to indifference if no one acts with the sole aim of helping them.

But politics is not forbidden. You just have to choose politics for the sake of politics. On the other hand, it is possible to engage in humanitarian politics on issues that affect the survival of populations, particularly access to drinking water, food security, the protection of populations, health and the application of International Humanitarian Law.

Why did you create Défis Humanitaires, which is publishing its 95th edition with this issue?

When I left my operational role at Solidarités International at the beginning of January 2018, I couldn’t imagine stopping for a moment.

Since then, I have continued to work with my favourite charity, but also with other organisations such as the Groupe de Concertation Humanitaire at the Centre de Crise et de Soutien of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, the Partenariat Français pour l’Eau (PFE), the VEOLIA Foundation and many other initiatives.

With Défis Humanitaires, I set out to contribute what I felt was missing and would be useful to the humanitarian community. Firstly, I wanted to promote the humanitarian sector, whose capacities and principles I felt were little known, among members of parliament, journalists, think tanks, companies and decision-makers. Secondly, to establish the causal link between the geopolitics of crises and humanitarian needs, in order to better understand and act more effectively. Finally, to highlight and document the major challenges facing humanity, such as the increasing scarcity and pollution of water, the galloping demographic growth in sub-Saharan Africa, the climate, the environment and funding.

This initiative is in line with those of the Forum Espace Humanitaire and the Revue Alternatives Humanitaires in France: to reflect, publish and debate on humanitarian issues, both in terms of content and methods of action. Défis Humanitaires is a humanitarian platform, a sort of Do Thank but not a Think Tank. We have adopted the motto ‘Act as a man of thought and think as a man of action’.

Following the launch of the magazine, we set up an association of the same name with a multidisciplinary committee of experts. It includes a number of humanitarians as well as experts in philanthropy, geopolitics, the media and business. The aim is to broaden the humanitarian circle to include other areas of expertise in order to strengthen and broaden it.

Member of the Défis Humanitaires Expert Committee

I noticed that, although the humanitarian world is in contact with a multitude of actors and situations, it is, on the whole, fairly self-centred, with a limited capacity to influence compared to the action taken. Similarly, I’ve noticed a lack of interest in geopolitics and strategic anticipation of what’s going to happen in order to prepare for it.

We publish a monthly edition, seeking to diversify each issue with topics on humanitarian crises, examples of innovation, articles or interviews on topical geopolitical issues, and opinion pieces.

We highlight the contribution of specific organisations (human resources, transport, logistics, digital, pay practices, management, water and sanitation) as well as NGO coordinating bodies in France and Europe.

We regularly publish summaries of reports such as those by the OECD, OCHA, Develoment Initiatives, ANALP and international conferences in the humanitarian and water sectors. These reports are very voluminous and not everyone has access to them. We provide 10-page summaries with graphics to our readers, in French and English.

Since 2018, we have published 360 articles or interviews by 160 different authors, a good quarter of whom are regular contributors. All of these are available in the archives section and form an easily accessible library. I would like to thank these authors for sharing their expertise, experience and thoughts with our readers.

What impact does DH have?

Défis Humanitaires is an online magazine with an international circulation. It is intended for a motivated and informed readership, not for the general public. Since 2018, the number of readers has risen steadily, from 1,000 per month at the outset to 4,000 today, i.e. almost 50,000 readers this year. We have readers primarily in France, but also in the United States, Burkina Faso, Switzerland, Senegal, Belgium, the DRC and elsewhere.

Défis Humanitaires is aimed at humanitarians, but also at journalists, parliamentarians, think tanks and students, foundations and national, European and international institutions. As a humanitarian who was in Brussels recently told me, Défis Humanitaires has become a reference magazine.

For example, we have recently published articles on Official Development Assistance and humanitarian aid in France, proposals for the reform of donor management control, funding and partnership with the European Commission (ECH0), an interview with UN OCHA, an update on digital tools, logistical pooling and current crises (Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, DRC).

What are your plans for 2025 and beyond?

Next year, we want to enrich and diversify our editions with more interviews, more articles on current crises, monitoring of funding, innovations, pooling between NGOs, but also on adaptation to climate change, the environment, water and the Sustainable Development Goals.

We also plan to publish digital books, including one on water and sanitation and another on humanitarian issues, based on a selection of good articles published recently.

Alain Boinet with French students at the SPFA Francophone Centre in Yerevan

I would also like to mention our initiative to bring in new books of contemporary French-language literature, which are totally lacking in the libraries of educational establishments. Sponsored by the writer Sylvain Tesson, this initiative is being carried out with the Syndicat National de l’Edition, publishing houses and the French embassy in Yerevan, and we hope to bring 2,000 to 3,000 selected new books to 76 libraries in Armenia.

Finally, we would like to publish the second edition of the Study on Humanitarian NGOs (2006-2023), which represents a considerable amount of work requiring demanding research and formatting. But all this requires additional resources, and we are counting heavily on our readers to make this possible.

It’s said that he who wants the end wants the means. What do you need to achieve this?

To achieve this for our readers, we first need their moral support, but we also need their support in the form of an end-of-year donation (helloAsso).

Remember that your support is tax-deductible at 66% of the amount of the donation, and we will send a tax receipt to every donor.

How would you like to conclude?

Défis Humanitaires is a free, independent, dynamic and forward-looking magazine. Its existence is largely thanks to voluntary work, but we need the support of our readers to continue and improve our mission of providing information.

As we can see, the clouds are gathering, but we do not lack the resources to face them and resolve many humanitarian challenges. We need to innovate, anticipate, pool our resources and influence public policy. More than ever, the humanitarian sector needs to mobilise its support and partners.

I would like to take this opportunity to warmly thank our authors, the members of the Bureau and the Défis Humanitaires Committee of Experts, as well as the donors and partners who, through their end-of-year donations (helloAsso), will enable us to carry out this humanitarian action which needs them, and wish them a Merry Christmas.

Alain Boinet is President of the association Défis Humanitaires, which publishes the online magazine www.defishumanitaires.com. He is the founder of the humanitarian association Solidarités International, of which he was Managing Director for 35 years. He is also a member of the Groupe de Concertation Humanitaire at the Centre de Crise et de Soutien of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, and of the Board of Directors of Solidarités International, the Partenariat Français pour l’Eau (PFE), the Véolia Foundation and the Think Tank (re)sources. He continues to travel to the field (Northeast Syria, Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh and Armenia) and to speak out in the media.