Disclaimer
Last updated 19 August 2026
This atlas is a work of independent research and public-interest journalism, built from published data. It is not an official publication, and its maps carry no legal weight.
The designations employed and the presentation of material on this site do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on our part concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
Basin and aquifer outlines are reproduced from the source datasets cited on each page — principally the Transboundary Freshwater Dispute Database (Oregon State University) and the IGRAC/UNESCO Transboundary Aquifers of the World map. They are hydrological research boundaries, not authoritative delimitations, and they sometimes cross or ignore contested political lines. Country names and groupings follow those datasets and UN usage; where a source lists a disputed or administratively separate area, it appears as the source records it. None of this constitutes recognition or endorsement of any territorial claim.
Anyone relying on this material for legal, diplomatic or operational purposes should consult the primary sources and the relevant authorities.
Every figure here is drawn from a cited public source, but sources disagree, data ages, and compilation introduces error. Several series have fixed end dates — notably the TFDD international water-events record, which ends in 2008, and the convention party lists, which are current "as of 2024". A basin showing "no treaty on record" means no agreement appears in the database consulted; it does not prove no agreement exists. Absence of data is not evidence of absence.
We make no warranty, express or implied, as to accuracy, completeness or fitness for any particular purpose.
Passages presented as a local or lived perspective are clearly marked composites, assembled from published reporting, NGO case studies and consultation records. They are not interviews, and they are not attributed to any named individual. Where a named expert appears, their position is a paraphrase of their published work in our words, with a link to the original — unless it is shown as a direct quotation, in which case the publication it was quoted in is cited alongside it.
Nothing on this site is legal, diplomatic, engineering, investment or policy advice. Do not make decisions with real-world consequences on the basis of an atlas.
Photographs are reproduced under the licences stated in each caption, mostly from Wikimedia Commons. Datasets remain the property of their publishers and are used under the terms recorded on the Sources & methods page. If you hold rights in material here and believe it is used incorrectly, please get in touch — we will correct or remove it promptly. A contact address is being set up and will be published on this page.
We publish corrections rather than quietly editing. If you find an error, we want to hear about it and will fix it and note the change. A contact address will be published here shortly.