That should cover about all my reservations up to now. Thank you for
this new viewpoint. It figures.
Peter S.
--- In BoundaryPoint@y..., "Brendan Whyte" <brwhyte@h...> wrote:
> The standard law over rivers as boundaries, that i BELIEVE holds as
default,
> unless replaced by specific provisions to thecontrary in a treaty,
is that
> the boundary moves with the river as it meanders naturally. This is
the
> process of accretion.
> However, if the river suddenty changes course, due to flood or a
man-made
> event (attempts to train the river to meander into the neighbouring
> teritory), then the boundary holds to the original course. This is
known as
> avulsion.
>
> Thus the Mississippi boundaries which follow old river courses that
are now
> dry, because the river has changed course, cutting off a large
loop, due to
> floods or man-made cuttings in the necks of loops, etc.
>
> However, some rivers, especially those in Bengal, meander so much,
and flood
> every year, that to let the boundary move with the river would mean
large
> differences year to year in territorial control. So when the
boundaries of
> India and Bangladesh follow the course of the river at demarcation,
and are
> then fixed on that meandering line, even if it becomes dry a year
or two
> later. Only in a couple of places do the boundaries follow the
rules of
> accretion/avulsion.
>
> Thus along the NSW/Vic border, the left bank of the Murray is the
state
> boundary. Some loops have been cut througgh for navigaiton/floow
control
> purposes. Even if these have since become the main channel, the
boundary
> still follows the natural left bank, because the cuts are man made.
This
> does leave Vic land on the NSW side of the river's current course.
>
> BW
>
>
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