From Stockholm to Rio II: The Natural and Institutional Landscapes Through Which Rivers Flow - River Conservation and Management - page 279

Table 24.1 Representative examples of river systems (or part thereof) listed under the World Heritage Convention
(WH), Ramsar Convention (R), or accepted as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (BR).

Site name Convention Country

The Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan WH China

Kakadu National Park WH; R Australia

Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River WH Philippines

Loire Valley Cultural Landscape WH France

Mid-Rhine Valley Cultural Landscape WH Germany

Zone Humide du Moyen Niger II R Niger

Danube delta WH; R; BR Romania/Ukraine

Volga delta R ; BR Russian Federation

Okavango delta R Botswana

River Luiro Mires R Finland

Waza Logone Floodplain R ; BR - part Cameroon

Upper Mississippi River Floodplain Wetland R USA

McConnell River R Canada

Rio Pilcomayo R Argentina

Flusslandschaft Elbe Biosphere Reserve Part WH; BR Germany 1

Paraguay 2 El Chaco Biosphere Reserve BR

Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve BR Canada 3

Cambodia 4 Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve BR

Middle Zambezi Biosphere Reserve BR Zimbabwe

Desnianskyi Biosphere Reserve BR Ukraine

1 This 'riverscape' biosphere reserve also comprises a cultural landscape, designated as World Heritage (The Garden
Kingdom of Dessau-Worlitz).
2 The Biosphere Reserve covers a series of ecosystems ranging from forest areas, matorral, savannahs and lacustrine and
riparian ecosystems, both of permanent and temporary character.
3 Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve is situated in south-eastern Ontario at the intersection of terrestrial and riverine
ecosystems, the Frontenac Arch and the Saint Lawrence River. The area comprises islands and islets of the Saint Lawrence
River that are important stepping-stones for the migration of plants and animals.
4 The Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve consists of a lake and its floodplain fed by the Mekong River with three distinct zones:
an open lake at its centre, a freshwater swamp forest surrounding it and seasonally flooded grasslands at the margins.
The area under water in the dry season is five times less than in the rainy season and the mass of flood water reverses
direction between seasons.

European Communities, 1992). The focus of this
Directive was 'to contribute towards ensuring
biodiversity through the conservation of natural
habitats and of wild fauna and flora in the
European territory of the Member States to which
the Treaty applies'. Given this focus on protected
area establishment the directive was thus limited in
application to river systems.
In 1997 the UN General Assembly voted for the
adoption of the Convention on the Law of the Non-
Navigational Uses of International Watercourses - a
global overarching framework governing the rights
and duties of States sharing freshwater systems.

Rieu-Clarke and Loures (2009) noted 'the potential
role that the Convention could play, once in force
and widely ratified may in fact be more critical
than ever.' So far only 17 States have signed
the UN Convention - less than half the number
required for entry into force. Despite the positive
experience of the UNECE Water Convention, the
underwhelming attitude of most nations seems
likely to keep the Convention unratified.
Individual activities under the various
established and new conventions proceeded
apace through the 1990s, including the adoption
by the CBD of a programme on inland waters