Bringing together contributions from diplomats, UN agency officials, lawyers and academics, this book provides insight into the evolution of international environmental law, diplomacy and negotiating techniques. Based on first-hand experiences and extensive research, the chapters offer a blend of practice and theory, history and analysis, presenting a range of historical episodes and nuances and drawing lessons for future improvements to the processes of law-making and diplomacy. The book represents a synthesis of the most important messages to emerge from the annual course on Multilateral Environmental Agreements, delivered to diplomats and negotiators from around the world for the last decade by the University of Eastern Finland and the United Nations Environment Programme. The book will be of interest as a guide for negotiators and as a supplementary textbook and a reference volume for a wide range of students of law and environmental issues.

Rafael Leal-Arcas expertly examines the interface of climate change mitigation and international trade law with a view to addressing the question: How can we make best use of the international trading system experience to aim at a global climate change agreement?The insightful book contributes to developing the architecture for a post 2012 global climate agreement and, in doing so, seeks and proposes new approaches to climate change mitigation by linking it to the international trade system. The author suggests the adoption of a bottom-up approach to climate change negotiations by using the evolution of multilateral trade agreements as a model for reaching a global climate treaty. He discusses the innovative approach of inserting climate goals within regional trade agreements, given their proliferation - especially bilateral - in the international trading system. He explains the trade implications of climate change mitigation policies by analyzing a couple of areas where the international regimes for trade and climate change mitigation may potentially clash. Climate Change and International Trade will strongly appeal to undergraduate and graduate students of international and European trade law, international and European environmental law as well as social science academics. NGOs, think tanks, practitioners, researchers, and international organizations will also find plenty of valuable information in this timely resource. Contents: 1. Prologue Part I: Setting the Scene 2. The Climate Change Challenge in the Context of International Trade 3. Environmental Protection and the International Trade System Part II: The Current State of Play 4. Legal and Policy Responses to Climate Change 5. Analyzing the Kyoto Protocol Part III: Moving Forward 6. Top-down and Bottom-up Approaches to Climate Change and Trade 7. Regional Trade Agreements and Climate Change 8. Geoengineering the Climate and Possible Trade Implications 9. Recommendations Bibliography Index

This book examines the intersection of WTO trade liberalisation rules and domestic health protection, a subject that is of considerable interest to those concerned that the WTO impinges on national regulatory autonomy. In analysing the tension between health protection and trade liberalisation, the book focuses on the way in which this tension is (or is not) resolved through the dispute resolution process. It offers a detailed analysis of the relevant WTO rules and case law, identifying particular concerns relating to the ability of WTO Members to take protective action in circumstances of scientific uncertainty and the role of social and cultural factors in the making of health-related regulations. The nature of scientific evidence and the extent to which the scientific process internalises uncertainty is further explored, drawing on documentation relating to the theory and conduct of scientific risk assessment. Despite the popularity of the precautionary principle in some quarters, it is suggested that it may not be advisable for the WTO to adopt that principle. Rather, further attention should be paid to the role that the standard of review might play in easing the tensions that arise when a sovereign state's health regulations are reviewed by the WTO. The origins of the WTO's 'objective assessment' standard of review are explained, but the standard itself is criticised. Options for developing the standard of review are considered, with a 'reasonable regulator' standard based on the Asbestos case proposed. The book takes a comparative approach, drawing on ECJ cases reviewing Member State and Community health measures as well as US judicial review and commerce clause cases.

The great seas contain immense resources and provide invaluable services to humankind, yet their environmental conditions are threatened worldwide. The authors of this comprehensive study provide a rich assessment of the seas and the efficacy of the initiatives governing them, as well as suggestions for improving governance and protection. Case studies of the Baltic, Mediterranean, Black, Caribbean and East Asian seas illustrate the varying degrees of policy success, failure and promise. The authors address the specific roles of the Law of the Sea and the United Nations Regional Seas Programme and discuss the importance of better information exchange between scientists and policymakers, increased funding, greater participation, and new and more effective laws. National, regional and international initiatives are conceptualized as clusters, and their success evaluated using data on the physical conditions of the seas, the law and policy adopted, and international cooperation. The interdisciplinary, insightful treatment of this complex issue will be of great interest to policymakers, students and scholars in the fields of law and policy as well as marine and environmental sciences.

This book provides a comprehensive review of the state of international law as it applies to transboundary groundwater resources and aquifers. The main focus is on recent developments and the emerging international law for transboundary aquifers as reflected in the practice of states and the work of the UN International Law Commission, UN Economic Commission for Europe, and International Law Association. The author takes an interdisciplinary approach to the subject matter and provides the scientific hydro-geological underpinning for the application of law and policy to transboundary groundwater resources. He also addresses the growing global dependence on this hidden resource, as well as both the historical and scientific context for development of the law. The book provides case examples throughout to illustrate the various concepts and developments. These include more detailed examinations of the few existing transboundary aquifer agreements in operation, such as for aquifers between France and Switzerland and Jordan and Saudi Arabia, as well as aquifers in North Africa and in South America.

International Natural Resources Law, Investment and Sustainability provides a clear and concise insight into the relationship between the institutions that govern foreign investment, sustainable development and the rules and regulations that administer natural resources. In this book, several leading experts explore different perspectives in how investment and natural resources come together to achieve sustainable development in developing countries with examples from water, oil and gas, renewable energy, mineral, agriculture, and carbon trading. Despite varying perspectives, it is clear that several themes are central in considering the linkages between natural resources, investment and sustainability. Specifically, transparency, good governance and citizen empowerment are vital conditions which encourage positive social, economic and environmental outcomes for developing countries. In addition, this book provides new insights into key concepts which underpin international law, including sovereign rights and state responsibility principles. It is clear from this book that in the attempt to reconcile these concepts and principles from separate legal regimes, complex policy questions emerge whereby it is difficult to attain mutually beneficial or succinct outcomes. This book explores how countries prioritise their policy objectives to achieve their notion of sustainable natural resource use, which is strongly influenced by power imbalances that inform North-South cooperation, as well as South-South cooperation in the international investment regime. This book will be of great interest to students, academics and researchers of international environmental law, international human rights law, international investment law and international economic law. This book may also be of relevance to environmentalists, policy-makers, NGOs, and investors working in the natural resources field.

Enough laws have been enacted since the adoption of the Nagoya Protocol on access and benefit-sharing to permit a study which is capable of accurately portraying the status quo of national implementation of the Protocol and the ensuing practice, emerging challenges and how countries are coping with them. This book, one of the first to present such a study, uniquely combines an examination of the new laws and practice and how they comply with the Nagoya Protocol; of issues not yet resolved by the Protocol and which solutions are being explored; and of how research and development is responding to the new situation. In addition, it proposes solutions to selected questions on ABS based on real-world and hypothetical cases, which could instigate litigation.Written by a team of expert academics and practitioners in the field, this book makes a valuable contribution to academic and policy debates and to academic literature on international environmental law, international biodiversity law, international property law, climate law and the law of indigenous populations. It also offers a reference guide for practicing lawyers in the area of ABS.

'In this important book, Benoit Mayer forces us to confront the implications of labelling in the climate migration context, and skillfully leverages this debate to shine a light on broader questions of the evolving role of global governance. His forthright analysis is both refreshing and appropriately challenging.' - James C. Hathaway, University of Michigan Law School 'The discussion on the legal aspects of climate migration is often limited to the issue of the legal status. Yet the debate extends way further, and Mayer offers a much-needed broader look at the different dimensions of this concept, their legal implications and political caveats.' - Francois Gemenne, University of Liege, Belgium, and Sciences Po, France Political narratives on climate or environmental migration have been deployed in support of policy arguments relating to humanitarian assistance, migration, and climate change, or to promote national security or economic interests. But while climate change certainly has various impacts on human mobility, it does not appear to create distinct ''climate migrants'' or (in general) unprecedented migration scenarios. In this timely book, Benoit Mayer offers a unique interdisciplinary inquiry into the prospects of different political narratives on climate migration. The Concept of Climate Migration identifies the essential narratives around climate migration - the humanitarian narrative, the migration narrative and the climate change narrative - and assesses their prospects. It argues that although such arguments will influence global governance, they will not necessarily achieve what advocates hope for. Throughout the discussion, it appears that the weaknesses of the concept of "climate migration" are likely to be utilized in favour of repressive policies against migration or for the defence of industrial nations against perceived threats from the Third World. This discerning book explores new paradoxes in political advocacy and relates them to some of the greatest challenges to contemporary global governance. It will be of great interest to researchers and postgraduate students interested in climate migration, climate change and the law, or anyone involved in advocacy around these important issues.

'The alleviation of poverty and the protection of the environment are both critical challenges for the vindication of basic human rights for all of humankind. This relationship is however not necessarily an easy one. While there is an inextricable link between poverty and the degradation of the environment, a sophisticated analysis of a problem needs to deal with those cases where the need to increase economic opportunity for poor communities may appear to conflict with fragile ecosystems or the preservation of traditional practices. This collection provides the most sustained engagement with these problems. Drawing on the expertise of a range of distinguished authors, this book presents the reader with an integrated global engagement with these problems. In doing so, it represents a landmark effort towards the creation of a coherent literature to deal with one of humankind's most pressing challenges.' - Dennis Davis, Judge of the High Court, South Africa This timely book explores the complex relationship between the alleviation of poverty and the protection of the environment. There is every reason to believe that these issues are in many ways interdependent. However this book demonstrates that there are situations where alleviation of poverty and the protection of the environment appear to be in a fraught relationship. The contributing authors illustrate that the role played by law in this relationship, whether at the international or national level, will vary depending on the situation and will be more successful at pursuing environmental justice in some cases than in others. This interdisciplinary study will appeal to academics and students in environmental law and other environmental disciplines, environmental policy makers and NGOs interested in issues of poverty, environment and indigenous peoples. Contributors: C.D. Aceves-Avila, D. Behn, K. Bubna-Litic, M.A. Cohen, E. Couzens, J.J. Gonzalez Marquez, S. Gruber, O.F. Jauregui, M. Kidd, Y. Le Bouthillier, P. Martin, A. Mumma, L.C. Paddock, C.G. Pring, G.W. Pring, S. Sabzwari, D.N. Scott, D. Shelton, S.L. Smith

This book provides a new interpretation of international law specifically dedicated to Indigenous peoples in the context of a climate justice approach. The book presents a critical analysis of past and current developments at the intersection of human rights and international environmental law and governance. The book suggests new ways forward and demonstrates the need for a paradigmatic shift that would enhance the meaningful participation of Indigenous peoples as fundamental actors in the conservation of biodiversity and in the fight against climate change. The book offers guidance on a number of critical intersecting and interdependent issues at the forefront of climate change law and policy - inside and outside of the UN climate change regime. The author suggests that the adoption of a critical perspective on international law is needed in order to highlight inherent structural and systemic issues of the international law regime which are all issues that ultimately impede the pursue of climate justice for Indigenous peoples.

Global findings estimate that 80 per cent of marine pollution originates from land-based sources and is trans-boundary in nature. These problems persist in spite of a number of legal and policy initiatives taken to protect the marine environment. This volume explores the applications and shortcomings of current international regimes in addressing these issues. The book identifies the sources and effects of land-based marine pollution and analyzes the problems of controlling them. Management principles, policy and regulation are examined at both regional and international level. The author discusses the strengths and weaknesses of existing regimes and advances a more effective international legal framework. The text provides a valuable insight into an important area of international environmental law. It will be of interest to researchers and policy-makers working in this area.

This innovative collection of essays discusses the extent to which considerations of justice and fairness have permeated the legal debate on environmental protection. Written by a wide range of contributors who have approached the subject from fresh theoretical and practical perspectives, the essays examine how these permutations of justice have influenced policy choices relating to topics like climate change, protection of the stratospheric zone, trade and the conduct of warfare. The significance of participatory rights as a medium for the realisation of environmental justice is given extended treatment, and the contributors also assess the congruence between environmental justice and structural issues, such as gender, class, state borders and, on a global scale, North-South relations. The book will inform and stimulate debate on an important-yet-neglected aspect of the environmental discourse, and is highly recommended for researchers and students of international and domestic law, political science and international relations.

In this topical collection, Professor Dinah Shelton brings together seminal articles published since the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment that discuss and debate the linkages between human rights and environmental protection. This comprehensive research review successfully encompasses the various approaches and thinking of the leading scholars in the field. This authoritative and timely book will be of great interest to lawyers, policy-makers, advocates and academics and will serve as an excellent reference tool for anyone with an interest in human rights and the environment.

Offering a detailed account of the various legal arrangements at European Union level, this book is an ideal reference tool for practitioners and legal scholars. As well as examining the principal sources of EU environmental law enforcement, it also contributes to the legal and political debates that surround the subject. Spanning three parts, the author examines the practical impact of the legal arrangements at Union level that are used to uphold EU environmental norms. Offering a comprehensive account of the current state of EU environmental law enforcement and the developments affecting it, Martin Hedemann-Robinson explores the role of the European Commission, the possibilities for private law enforcement, and the responsibilities of member state national authorities. Key legal developments that have occurred since the first edition have been incorporated, including new statutory developments and case law. Particular attention is paid to the impact of the 2007 Lisbon Treaty on foundational EU treaty provisions enabling the European Commission to take legal action against EU member states infringing Union environmental law, the establishment of a new legal architecture at Union level on the topic of environmental criminal policy, as well as increased EU legislative intervention in the area of environmental inspections. The impact of the 1998 Arhus Convention on EU environmental law enforcement is also addressed in detail, including the influence of recommendations of the Arhus Convention's Compliance Committee.

This book investigates how sustainability informs key principles and concepts of domestic and international law. It calls for the recognition of ecological sustainability as a fundamental principle to guide the entire legal system rather than just environmental legislation. To this end, the book makes a contribution to global environmental constitutionalism, a rapidly growing area within comparative and international environmental law and constitutional law. This 2nd edition has been fully revised and updated to take account of recent developments and new case law. The book will be a valuable resource for students, researchers and policy makers working in the areas of environmental law and governance.

Remarkable advances are being made in life science and agricultural research to reform the methods of food production, particularly with regard to staple grain and legume crops, in ways that will better reflect ecological realities. However, advances in science may be insufficient to ensure that these possibilities for agricultural reform are realized in practice and in a sustainable way. This book shows how these can only be achieved through changes in legal norms and institutions at the global level. Interdisciplinary in character, the book draws from a range of issues involving agricultural innovation, international legal history and principles, treaty commitments, global institutions, and environmental challenges, such as climate change, to propose broad legal changes for transforming global agriculture. It first shows how modern extractive agriculture is unsustainable on economic, environmental, and social grounds. It then examines the potential for natural-systems agriculture (especially perennial-polyculture systems) for overcoming the deficiencies of modern extractive agriculture, especially to offset climate change. Finally it analyses closely the legal innovations that can be adopted at national and international levels to facilitate a transition from modern extractive agriculture to a system based more on ecological principles. In particular the author argues for the creation of a Global Convention on Agroecology.

River systems around the world are degraded and are being used unsustainably. Meeting this challenge requires the development of flexible regimes that have the potential to meet essential consumptive needs while restoring environmental flows. This book focuses on how water trading frameworks can be repurposed for environmental water recovery and aims to conceptualise the most appropriate role for law in supporting recovery through these frameworks. The author presents a comprehensive study of the legal frameworks in four jurisdictions: the States of Oregon and Colorado in the western United States; the province of Alberta in Canada; and the Murray-Darling Basin in Australia/Basin State of New South Wales. A close comparative analysis of these four jurisdictions reveals a variety of distinctive regulatory arrangements and collaborations between public and private actors. In all cases, the law has been deployed to steer and coordinate these water governance activities. The book argues that each regime is based on a particular regulatory strategy, with different conceptions of the appropriate roles for, and relationships between, various actors and institutions. Legal frameworks do not have the capacity to rationalise and provide an overarching and absolute solution to the complex environmental and governance issues that arise in the context of environmental water transactions. Rather, the role of law in this context needs to be reconceptualised within the paradigm of regulatory capitalism as establishing and maintaining the limits within which regulatory participants can operate, innovate and collaborate.

'Humanity has been gambling for generations with the extent to which it can degrade nature and continue to prosper. Now the environmental debt is being called in and the ability of international diplomacy and law, government policy and political will to deal with the issues is being tested. Conservation, Biodiversity and International Law is a must read for any practitioner in the high-stakes business of restoring our ability to live in harmony with the natural world that sustains us.' - Alastair Morrison, Department of Conservation, New Zealand 'Biodiversity is the cornerstone of life - our plants, animals, and ecosystems are essential for livelihoods and have shaped our culture and traditions around the world. However our precious biodiversity is at risk as never before. Global targets to reduce biodiversity loss have not been met and we continue to lose biodiversity at an unprecedented rate. In fact we are currently in the middle of an extinction crisis and scientists have advised that one species from our planet is being lost every 38 minutes! The nature of this crisis and the actions taken to address it are clearly and articulately put forward in this landmark book by Professor Al Gillespie. This book is particularly useful in documenting the many policy and legal actions that have been taken to address these issues, and how the application of these instruments can be improved. Although focused on the law, the book covers a range of disciplines including science, philosophy and policy which lay the foundation for international law. This book makes a major and highly valued contribution to the disciple of environmental law and policy and is an invaluable reference for policy makers, practitioners and academic audiences.' - David Sheppard, CEO of the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) This important and timely book provides a rigorous overview of the defining issues presently facing conservation at international level. The author provides detailed coverage of topics ranging from the classification of species right through to access and benefit sharing, drawing on his personal experience at intergovernmental level. Each question is examined through the prism of dozens of treaties and hundreds of decisions and resolutions of the key multilateral regimes, and the law in each area is supplemented by the necessary considerations of science politics and philosophy - providing much-needed context for the reader. Combining expert scholarship and first-hand insight, Conservation, Biodiversity and International Law will be an invaluable resource for researchers and practitioners in international environmental law, as well as providing an accessible guide for students.

A solution to the problem of climate change requires close international cooperation and difficult reforms involving all states. Law has a clear role to play in that solution. What is not so clear is the role that law has played to date as a constraining factor on state conduct. International Climate Change Law and State Compliance is an unprecedented treatment of the nature of climate change law and the compliance of states with that law. The book argues that the international climate change regime, in the twenty or so years it has been in existence, has developed certain normative rules of law, binding on states. State conduct under these rules is characterized by generally high compliance in areas where equity is not a major concern. There is, by contrast, low compliance in matters requiring a burden-sharing agreement among states to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to a 'safe' level. The book argues that the substantive climate law presently in place must be further developed, through normative rules that bind states individually to top-down mitigation commitments. While a solution to the problem of climate change must take this form, the law's development in this direction is likely to be hesitant and slow. The book is aimed at scholars and graduate students in environmental law, international law, and international relations.

Environmental crime is one of the most profitable and fastest growing areas of international criminal activity. The increasing cross-border scope of environmental crimes and harms is one of the reasons why governments and the enforcement community have trouble in finding the proper responses. Law enforcement cooperation between western industrialized states is often time consuming and problematic, and the problems increase exponentially when environmental criminals take advantage of situations where government and law enforcement are weak. This book provides an overview of the developments and problems in the field of transnational environmental crimes and harms, addressing these issues from perspectives such as enforcement, deterrence, compliance and emission trading schemes. Divided into four parts, the authors consider global issues in green criminology, responses to transnational environmental crimes and harms, alternative methods to combat environmental crime, and specific types of crimes and criminological research. Discussing these topics from the view of green criminology, sociology and governance, this book will be of great interest to all those concerned about the transnational dimensions of crime and the environment.

The Book takes the approach of a critique of the prevailing international environmental law-making processes and their systemic shortcomings. It aims to partly redesign the current international environmental law-making system in order to promote further legislation and more effectively protect the natural environment and public health. Through case studies and doctrinal analyses, an array of initial questions guides the reader through a variety of factors influencing the development of International Environmental Law. After a historical analysis, commencing from the Platonic philosophy up to present, the Book holds that some of the most decisive factors that could create an optimized law-making framework include, among others: progressive voting processes, science-based secondary international environmental legislation, new procedural rules, that enhance the participation in the law-making process by both experts and the public and also review the implementation, compliance and validity of the science-base of the laws. The international community should develop new law-making procedures that include expert opinion. Current scientific uncertainties can be resolved either by policy choices or by referring to the so-called "sound science." In formulating a new framework for environmental lawmaking processes, it is essential to re-shape the rules of procedure, so that experts have greater participation in those, in order to improve the quality of International Environmental Law faster than the traditional processes that mainly embrace political priorities generated by the States. Science serves as one of the main tools that will create the next generation of International Environmental Law and help the world transition to a smart, inclusive, sustainable future.

The first in an exciting new series on international environmental law, this incisive collection of 18 seminal essays traces the evolution of the subject from its early beginnings, through the formative years of the Stockholm and Rio de Janeiro UN Conferences to the contemporary 'post-modern' era. The articles selected provide an overview of the legal discourse that shaped the emergence of this discipline. They also illustrate how international environmental law - in a multitude of treaties, jurisprudence of courts and tribunals, and a growing body of recognized customary principles - has not only come to govern the management of our planet's common natural resources, but has had a profound impact on the general theory and practice of international law. The History and Origin of International Environmental Law will be of lasting interest to scholars and students in the history of international relations and political science, and offers valuable lessons for future governance of the global environment. 18 articles, dating from 1915 to 2011 Contributors include: P.W. Birnie, S. McCaffrey, M.J. Glennon , R.L. Meyer, K. Raustiala, J.L. Sax, L.B. Sohn, C.D. Stone, J.B. Wiener

A new human right of public participation by those affected by natural resource development is set to define major economic developments in the twenty-first century. It is a fundamental part of the international norm of 'sustainable development', designed to harmonize economic betterment and environmental-cultural-social protection for this and succeeding generations. This book, authored by world experts in international resources law, provides the theoretical and practical guidance essential to understanding and dealing with this new development.

The history of international environmental dialogue is a history of conflict between developing and industrial countries encompassing the framework, nature, and agenda of international environmental law. The conflict is focused on who should take responsibility, in what measure, and under what conditions to contain global environmental degradation. In the face of inequality in resources and contributions to global environmental degradation, sovereign states have crafted a burden sharing arrangement rooted in differential treatment. Differential treatment refers to the use of norms that provide for different, more advantageous, treatment to some states. Real differences exist between states, and the norms of differential treatment recognize and respond to these differences by instituting different standards for different states or groups of states. This book explores the value of differential treatment in integrating developing countries into international environmental regimes. It systematically categorizes and analyses the terms of integration, respecting differential treatment across new generation environmental treaties. It ferrets out the philosophical and practical bases for differential treatment in environmental treaties, and creates a framework within which differential treatment can be assessed. It suggests certain boundaries to differential treatment in international environmental law, and explores in detail the reach of differential treatment in the climate regime. The conflict between industrial and developing countries has thus far significantly impaired the ambition of the international environmental agenda. The relevance of this book lies in its ability to provide a principled framework within which the conflict between industrial and developing countries in the international environmental realm can be examined and resolved.

Climate change poses fundamental and varied challenges to all communities across the globe. The adaptation and mitigation strategies proposed by governments and non-governmental organisations are likely to require radical and fundamental shifts in socio-political structures, technological and economic systems, organisational forms, and modes of regulation. The sheer volume of law and policy emanating from the international level makes it uncertain which type of regulatory or policy framework is likely to have a positive impact. The success or failure of proposed measures will depend on their acceptability within the local constituencies within which they are sought to be applied. Therefore there is an urgent need to better comprehend and theorise the role of cultural legitimacy in the choice and effectiveness of international legal and policy interventions aimed at tackling the impact of climate change. The book brings together experts to present perspectives from different disciplines on the issue of international climate change law and policy. Beginning from the premise that legitimacy critiques of international climate change regulation have the capacity to positively influence policy trends and legal choices, the book showcases innovative ideas from across the disciplines and investigate the link between the efficacy of international legal and policy mechanisms on climate change and cultural legitimacy. The book includes chapters on with a theoretical basis as well as specific case-studies from around the globe. The topics covered include: land use planning as a tool of enhancing cultural legitimacy, indigenous peoples in international environmental negotiations, transnational advocacy networks, community-based forestry management and culture and voluntary social movements.