Whales and elephants are iconic giants of the marine and terrestrial animal world. Both are conspicuous representatives of wildlife conservation. The issues of whaling and the ivory trade are closely linked, both legally and politically, in many ways; some obvious, and some surprising. The treatment of both whales and elephants will be politically and legally contentious for years to come, and is of great significance to conservation in general. This book examines the current state of international environmental law and wildlife conservation through a comparative analysis of the treatment of whales and elephants. In particular, it describes the separate histories of international governance of both whales and elephants, presenting the various treaties through which conservation has been implemented. It is shown that international environmental law is influenced and shaped by important political actors - many with opposing views on how best conservation, and sustainable development, principles are to be implemented. Modern environmental treaties are changing as weaknesses and loopholes are exposed in older, and possibly outdated, treaties such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW). Such weaknesses can be seen in the efforts made by some states to circumvent or weaken CITES and the International Whaling Commission and to resume commercial whaling, and further in the efforts of countries to resume trade in ivory. The argument is made that the Convention on Biological Diversity could be used to begin reconciling opposed views and to focus conservation efforts. The argument is made that effective conservation of species cannot be achieved through individual treaties, but only through a synergistic approach involving multilateral environmental agreements - 'ecosystems of legal instruments'.

This work analyses fairness and equity dimensions of the climate regime. A central issue in international law and policy is how countries of the world should allocate the burden of addressing global climate change. With the link between human activities and climate change clearly established, and the first impacts of climate change being felt, there is a renewed sense of urgency in addressing the problem. Based on an overview of science and the development of the climate regime to date, this book seeks to identify the elements of a working consensus on fairness principles that could be used to solve the hitherto intractable problem of assigning responsibility for combating climate change. The book demonstrates how an analysis of fairness dimensions of climate change grounded in practical developments and illustrated with reference to the latest developments can add value to our understanding of current developments and future options for international climate law and policy."

Die Umwelt wird in internationalen bewaffneten Konflikten nicht allein durch das Kriegsvolkerrecht geschutzt. Dies zeigen die Untersuchungen dieses Buches. Anwendung finden auch die Bestimmungen des (Friedens-)Umweltvolkerrechts, welche die Umwelt im Interesse der Staatengemeinschaft als Ganzes schutzen. Dazu gehoren u.a. die Bestimmungen zum Schutz der Umwelt der Antarktis und des Weltraums, die umweltschutzenden Vorschriften des Seerechtsubereinkommens sowie die Klimarahmenkonvention und das Ubereinkommen zum Schutz der biologischen Vielfalt. Sie binden - in Analogie insbesondere zu Menschenrechtsvertragen - die sich bekampfenden Staaten. Nur ausnahmsweise und bei Vorliegen besonderer Notlagen wahrend eines bewaffneten Konfliktes kann eine Modifizierung dieser Pflichten zum Schutz der Umwelt angenommen werden.

The first protocol to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted in Kyoto in 1997 and entered into force in February 2005. It is a unique international law instrument which sets legally binding targets for the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases which contribute to climate change. The targets are unprecedented in an environmental agreement and will involve substantial financial commitment in virtually all industrialized country parties to the protocol. The Kyoto Protocol is also the first international agreement to include economic instruments which are designed to involve private sector entities and assist parties to meet their targets. These economic instruments, known as the Kyoto or flexible mechanisms, are Joint Implementation (JI), the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and International Emissions Trading. The Kyoto Protocol defined these mechanisms but did not set out the details necessary for their operation. After protracted negotiations, detailed rules were finalized at the Seventh Session of the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties held in Marrakech in 2001. The Marrakech Accords run to almost 250 pages but still leave many important practical issues unaddressed. As the 2008-2012 commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol draws close more and more projects under CDM and JI are being developed to take advantage of the Kyoto mechanisms and the key issues and problems are now becoming more apparent. Drawing on the emerging body of expertise in this complex area, this book conveys a knowledge of what is becoming known as 'Carbon Finance'. It thereby aims to contribute to the development of the market for carbon emission reductions - one of the objectives of the Kyoto mechanisms.

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.

The system of international co-operation in the Antarctic has been evolving rapidly since the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959. Inextricably linked to this co-operation is the question of the rational management of Antarctic resources. In this book Professor Orrego Vicuna examines in depth the legal framework - the Antarctic Treaty, sovereignty, jurisdiction and the law of the sea - as it relates to the exploitation of Antarctic minerals. This is fast becoming a live issue with the ever-growing potential for the development of these resources. The first part of the book examines the main characteristics of the international legal framework governing the co-operation of states in Antarctica, particularly in relation to resource conservation. Against this background, in the second part of the book, the regime for mineral resources is discussed in sufficient detail to identify the basic issues and interests which have to be accommodated in order to attain an acceptable convention. The final part of the book considers the important set of questions raised by the interest of the world community at large in the Antarctic: most significantly, the initiatives concerning a broader international participation under the auspices of the United Nations.

The Antarctic Treaty regime is a uniquely successful legal system which preserves Antarctica for peaceful purposes and guarantees freedom of scientific research. This volume based on an international conference, examines the legal, political and environmental issues that it raises. After setting the scene of the Antarctic environment, the early chapters discuss the legal issues involved in the Treaty. Later chapters consider protection of the marine environment and the regulation of mineral exploitation. The book concludes with a discussion of Antarctica and its development.

Marine Environmental Governance: From International Law to Local Practice considers the relationship between international environmental law and community-based management of marine areas. Focusing on small island states, in which indigenous populations have to a large extent continued to maintain traditional lifestyles, this book takes up the question of how indigenous customary law and state-based legislation can be reconciled in the implementation of international environmental law. Including a range of case studies, as well as detailed comparative analysis, it pursues an interdisciplinary approach to legal pluralism 'in practice' that will be of considerable interest to environmental lawyers, legal anthropologists, conservation biologists and those working in the area of community-based conservation.

In 2007, the International Max Planck Research School for Maritime Affairs together with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), both based in Hamburg, decided to establish an annual lecture series, the "Hamburg Lectures on Maritime Affairs" - giving distinguished scholars and practitioners the opportunity to present and discuss recent developments in this field. The present volume - the second in the series - collects eight of the lectures held in 2009 and 2010 by David Joseph Attard, Lucius Caflisch, Beate Czerwenka, Lars Gorton, Francesco Munari, Kyriaki Noussia, Peter Wetterstein and Wolfgang Wurmnest.

Voluntary approaches, such as corporate codes of conduct, have been widely advocated as alternatives to traditional approaches to environmental regulation. Yet concern remains that companies cannot be trusted to police themselves and that many of the putative advantages of self-regulation, such as reduced cost and increased flexibility, have not been realised in practice. The book systematically analyses three initiatives (environmental management systems, the Australian Greenhouse Challenge and the Australian mining industry's Code for Environmental Management) and their contribution to public environmental policy. By moving the debate away from narrow considerations of economic efficiency towards a broader framework that accounts for the multiple goals to which environmental policy needs to be directed, this book significantly enhances our understanding of the role that voluntary approaches can play in achieving environmental policy goals. The book is required reading for all those concerned with the design and implementation of modern environmental policy.

The objective of this book is to identify similarities and differences between the positions of Finland (as an EU Member State) and China, on Arctic law and governance. The book compares Finnish and Chinese legal and policy stances in specific policy areas of relevance for the Arctic, including maritime sovereignty, scientific research, marine protected areas, the Svalbard Treaty and Arctic Council co-operation. Building on these findings, the book offers general conclusions on Finnish and Chinese approaches to Arctic governance and international law, as well as new theoretical insights on Arctic governance. The book is the result of a collaboration between The Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law (Arctic Centre, University of Lapland) and researchers from Wuhan University.

Ocean-a source of life, has been overused and heavily polluted. While the traditional approaches might not be able to solve the complexity of the ocean governance issues, there is a need to adopt a new way of thinking in order to deal with the current problems. This book emphasises the importance of law and policy while generating ocean governance initiatives. "Good Ocean Governance" as a new way of thinking, needs to be supported by legislation and decision makers. It is, therefore, necessary to examine whether the idea of good ocean governance exists within the international legal system and is subsequently subject to transfer into the domestic law. During this transaction process, a number of examples provided from the United States, Canada and Australia help to demonstrate the broad picture. Also included are discussions on the governance of marine resources, ship recycling and marine pollution, the impact of maritime clusters as well as social and culture impact of ports. The ultimate aim of this book is to tease out more new ideas and discussions on ocean governance issues.

The fifth and final volume of the International Environmental Law Reports collects together eighteen decisions from international tribunals. As well as decisions of the International Court of Justice, the volume includes decisions from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, various arbitral tribunals and the United Nations Compensation Commission. The comprehensive case summaries are also backed up by detailed cross references to original sources. Covering four decades of legal proceedings, this volume brings the 'classic' decisions up to date with the major modern decisions of international tribunals.

The fifth and final volume of the International Environmental Law Reports collects together eighteen decisions from international tribunals. As well as decisions of the International Court of Justice, the volume includes decisions from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, various arbitral tribunals and the United Nations Compensation Commission. The comprehensive case summaries are also backed up by detailed cross references to original sources. Covering four decades of legal proceedings, this volume brings the 'classic' decisions up to date with the major modern decisions of international tribunals.

In this thought-provoking new book, career U.S. State Department negotiator Richard J. Smith offers readers unprecedented access to the details about some of the most complex and politically charged international agreements of the late and immediate post Cold War era. During his nine years as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Smith led U.S. negotiations on many significant international agreements. In Negotiating Environment and Science, Smith presents first-hand, in-depth accounts of eight of the most high-profile negotiations in which he was directly involved. The negotiations Smith covers are wide-ranging and include the London agreement to amend the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, the international space station agreement, the U.S.-Soviet (eventually, U.S.-Russian) agreement on scientific cooperation, the U.S.-Canada acid rain agreement, the negotiations in Sofia, Bulgaria that established a first link between human rights and the environment, and a contentious confrontation with Japan over driftnet fishing. Smith chronicles the development of these negotiations, the challenges that emerged (as much within the U.S. delegations as with the foreign partners), and the strategies that led to substantive treaties. Smith infuses his narrative with unique historical insight as well as astute observations that can guide U.S. strategies toward productive international agreements in the future. His book also highlights the shift in diplomatic focus over the past 25 years from arms control and other security-related agreements to international and trans-boundary agreements that address global environmental threats and promote cooperative approaches in science and technology. Written for an audience with a general interest in environmental issues as well as international relations, Negotiating Environment and Science will also be an important resource for historians, political scientists, and students in international law and diplomacy.

How can we best protect the polar marine environment against pollution? Leading scholars on environmental law, the law of the sea, and Arctic and Antarctic affairs here examine this important question. To what extent do existing global instruments of environmental protection apply to the Arctic Ocean and the Southern Ocean? Can the arrangements adopted at regional, sub-regional and national levels provide adequate protection? This book examines and compares various levels of regulation in protecting the marine environment of the Arctic and Antarctic, with specific attention to land-based activities, radioactive waste dumping, and shipping in ice-covered waters. Developments since the establishment of the Arctic Council in 1996 and the entry into force of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty in 1998 are also discussed. This is a volume that will appeal to polar specialists and to all those interested in environmental law and policy.

This volume is an important contribution to both theoretical and practical approaches to solving contradictions and conflicts between the approaches, principles, objectives and regulations of international environmental agreements. The issue of the coordination and streamlining of environmental agreements is of growing importance regarding the increasing number of international regulations on the one hand and the urgency for effective instruments in the light of continuing environmental degradation on the other. This study will become an essential reference for scholars as well as practitioners working in the field of international environmental law.

Climate change is affecting the Arctic environment and ecosystems at an accelerating speed, twice the rate of the global average. This is opening the Arctic to transportation and resource development and creating serious challenges for local communities and indigenous peoples.

Climate Governance in the Arctic considers two aspects of climate change from an institutional perspective. It focuses on how relevant regimes, institutions and governance systems support mitigation of climate change. It also examines the extent to which the varying governance arrangements in the Arctic support adaptation and the development of adaptation processes for the region. The book 's focus on Arctic governance offers unique insights within climate change mitigation and adaptation research.

This comprehensive Handbook describes the implementation of SEA in 18 countries around the world, as well as a critical analysis of different SEA methodologies. It introduces key SEA principles and the legal requirements of the new European SEA Directive, which became law in 2004, and describes the implementation of SEA in 11 European Union countries, as well as the USA, Canada and New Zealand. This is contrasted with SEA requirements of four developing countries.

Standards and Thresholds play an important role in many stages of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process. They can be legally binding or guidance values and are linked to environmental data. This book provides a comprehensive collection of standards and thresholds, with their derivation and application in case studies of EIA projects. The text introduces key drivers of standards, their effect on environment and health, emerging issues and more.

Despite the potential benefits that the IMO's Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) designation can deliver, recent practice within the IMO and by individual member states has considerably undermined confidence in this emerging concept. The focus of this book is on the events within the IMO that have led to this lack of confidence arising. In the process, this book presents an examination of coastal State practice with the PSSA concept.

Marine Environmental Governance: From International Law to Local Practice considers the relationship between international environmental law and community-based management of marine areas. Focusing on small island states, in which indigenous populations have to a large extent continued to maintain traditional lifestyles, this book takes up the question of how indigenous customary law and state-based legislation can be reconciled in the implementation of international environmental law. Including a range of case studies, as well as detailed comparative analysis, it pursues an interdisciplinary approach to legal pluralism 'in practice' that will be of considerable interest to environmental lawyers, legal anthropologists, conservation biologists and those working in the area of community-based conservation.

Subsidies to fisheries have been in existence for centuries. However, these remained outside the spotlight of the international community until the turn of this century when the negative effects that fisheries subsidies have on international trade, the environment and sustainable development became increasingly clear. As a result the Doha Round Negotiations set the parameters for an effective fisheries subsidies regime. WTO Members thus embarked in intensive negotiations with the collaboration of various international organizations. These negotiations culminated with publication of the legal text of the Chairman of the Negotiating Group on Rules in 2007 which reflects to a large extent the mandates of the Ministerial Conferences and reconciles the diverse interests of the negotiators. The EU as a major WTO Member and with its own Common Fisheries Policy which has been in effect for a number of years can serve as the basis for comparison and improvement of the proposed regulations.

This book reveals the many harms which flow across the ever-more porous sovereign borders of a globalising world. These harms expose weaknesses in the international legal regime built on sovereignty of nation states. Using the Trail Smelter Arbitration, one of the most cited cases in international environmental law, this book explores the changing nature of state responses to transboundary harm. Taking a critical approach, the book examines the arbitration's influence on international law generally, and international environmental law specifically. In particular, the book explores whether there are lessons from Trail Smelter that are useful for resolving transboundary challenges confronting the international community. The book collects the commentary of a distinguished set of international law scholars who consider the history of the Trail Smelter arbitration, its significance for international environmental law, its broader relationship to international law, and its resonance in fields beyond the environment.

This book examines uniform contract law in all relevant areas of legal doctrine and practice, and considers the barriers which exist toward it in modern nation states, namely in the German and English legal systems. The author suggests ways to overcome these obstacles, and develops an autonomous methodology of interpretation of transnational contract principles. The book analyses existing uniform transnational law rules, such as the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts.