All chapters:

Introduction

Climate

Waters and water management

Ecosystems and ecoregions

Species diversity and use of biological resources

Nature conservation: econet and protected areas

Countries & cultures

Economy

Land use

International policy

Amur-Heilong River Basin Reader

Edited by
Eugene A. Simonov and Thomas D. Dahmer

February 2008.

The Amur-Heilong River is the eleventh largest river basin in the world and the longest free-flowing river in the Eastern Hemisphere. This work describes the basin in four parts. Part One describes the natural setting, home to wild ginseng, Siberian tiger, far eastern leopard, Mongolian gazelle, snow sheep, Siberian spruce grouse, red-crowned crane, kaluga and Amur sturgeon, and hucho taimen.
Part Two compares and contrasts socio-economic conditions and natural resource management in the three main basin countries, Russia, China, Mongolia.
Part Three describes the reason for the recent increase in awareness of the Amur-Heilong, the environmental threats brought by rapidly growing economies and human populations.
One thread unites many basin-wide issues in the Reader, the concept of transboundary responsibility. Previous attempts at transboundary management of the Amur-Heilong’s natural resources have failed to yield lasting results. In Part Four we discuss new approaches to address transboundary threats and to overcome past failures.
The Reader argues for prompt and effective action backed by technology and funding to restore the natural wealth of this globally important but largely unknown river basin. We hope administrators, managers, researchers, politicians, planners, conservationists, and business interests will use the Reader to define their role in this process. We hope the Reader will accelerate the spread of global awareness of this magnificent region and contribute to its restoration and long-term protection.

Full-size PDF.

Glossary, References, Abbreviations PDF

Acknowledgements