Group 4-International Environmental Law.ppt

This is one of the topics in The Contemporary World

1. International Environmental Law
Atty. Maurice Bryan G. Roslinda, JD, MPA

2. Introduction
International environmental law encompasses a diverse
group of topics:
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The Rio
Declaration On
Environment &
Development
Convention On
Long-Range
Transboundary
Pollution
United Nations Framework
Convention On Climate Change
The Kyoto Protocol On Global
Warming

3. Introduction
Like many other branches of international law,
international environmental law is interdisciplinary
Economics
Political
science
Ecology
Navigation
Human
rights
IEL
International
agreements Until the late
1960s…
Protecting the
environment
1972: Stockholm
Declaration
Desire to limit damages
to the environment

4. Effective results:
reducing Global
Warming
Introduction
Idea of this presentation…
Structure…
International
Environmental
Law
Proposal to
improve
References and
short history about
IEL. Problems &
proposals
What
governments are
doing committing
with the Kyoto
Protocol
Potential success
of the proposed
solution &
conclusions
Past Present Future
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5. Past: Two sides of the same issue
Legal approach
If the threats offered by global
climate change must be
averted, the prominent role of
law cannot be downplayed
Skeptics point
International law is an
ineffective tool for
protecting the global
environment
Exhortations and
warnings are not
enough
All responsibilities transmitted to an international authority.
Empowered to act on behalf the humankind.
Construction and imposition of laws and sanctions.

6. Past: What is important?
Countries tend to focus more on the process of making a treaty,
but give less attention on what it really can do when enforced in the
right way.
Role of law
…restricted by…
Territorial
sovereignty of
countries
Basic principle of International Law
Right of a state to choose to or refuse
to be a party to an international
obligation on the environment.
United States has refused with so
much impunity to ratify the Kyoto
protocol till date

7. “As president of US, charged with safeguarding the welfare of American
people and American worker, I will not commit our Nation to an unsound
international treaty that will throw millions of our citizens out of work”.
Past: United States priorities
On February 2002, president Bush stated on his speech:
The refusal of the protocol by one of the largest The refusal of the protocol by one of the largest
world emitting nation and a major economic super world emitting nation and a major economic super
power is clearly a power is clearly a big set back big set back in the war against in the war against
global warming.global warming.
Nevertheless…

8. World
Media
Past: Light of hope
Acceptance of the overwhelming evidence
of the danger of the global warming issue.
Everyone is involved in this reality, even
the USA; 12 bills have been proposed
calling for cuts in emission
Need to define the
government's
obligations towards
future generations
LEADERSHIP
The government is the only enduring
institution with control over human
actions, which makes it capable of
standing for a solution.
Complement the commitment with the global initiatives with local efforts

9. Past: Issuing a proposal
Thousands of agencies
Expertise, authority, and staffing
Made global warming a top priority
Key point of the
problem
While the purpose of environmental law is to
protect natural resources, almost every law also
provides authority to the agencies mentioned
before to permit, in their discretion, the
pollution or land damage that the law was
designed to prevent
In practice, most agencies spend all of their resources to allow environmental
destruction.

10. Present: The proposal
Governments also can help at a national and local level if they
have institutions and budget to control the emissions they
committed to reduce in Kyoto and in other conferences.
International cooperation
Countries with developed
technologies should
cooperate with developing
countries to transfer
technology and knowledge
to their institutions
International
cooperation in its
essence principles
states the importance
of capacity building.
Sustainability

11. Present: The starting point is the law
According to the Kyoto Protocol…
“All parties shall cooperate in and promote at the international level, and, where
appropriate, using existing bodies, the development and implementation of education and
training programmes, including the strengthening of national capacity building”.
(Kyoto Protocol)

12. Present: Political will
Government’s help at a national and local level:
Based on Political will.
It grows overnight when citizens demand action.
Problem…
Most people do not perceive global warming as an immediate threat.
Without a sense of immediate loss, the public will not feel the urgency to demand
government to take leadership
Create sense of urgency and reality in the people
People are more focused on their energy on reducing their own
contamination rather than holding their leaders accountable.

13. Present: Liability for environmental damage

14. Present: Important Concepts
The polluter pays
Environmental
impact
assessment
(EIA)
The precautionary
approach or
precautionary principle:
The polluter pays

16. Future: Conclusions
Here some effects of global warming in 100 years in time:
Warming of up to six degrees Celsius (which can be the difference
between an ice age and an interglacial period).
Sea level rise of up to 60 centimeters (the threat to hundred of millions of
people in the river deltas and islands around the globe).
Intense weather extremes (hurricanes, floods and droughts).
Disappearance of mountain glaciers.
The spread of infectious diseases like malaria.

17. Future: Conclusions
At this point the Kyoto Protocol had been ratified by 151 states and the European
Community. To enter in to force, it needed 55 % of the states whose aggregate carbon
dioxide emissions for 1990 amount to 55 % of total emissions. Since emissions from
Russia and the United States are such large proportion of the total, in practice this
needed at least one of them to ratified, which Russia did in 2004. The Protocol then
entered in force in 2005, without USA, the protocol’s effectiveness will be that much
less, though its approach remains controversial. (Aust, 2005: 340)

18. Future: Conclusions
“All countries should take climate change concerns as seriously as
possible by enacting domestic legislations which limits emission
reduction within their territories. Legislations at national levels
which restrict GHG emitting activities by industries and by
large emitting sectors will go along way to reduce aggregate
emissions in industrialized countries” DAMILOLA, Sunday
Olawuyi. (2007) Detonating the Global Climate Change Time
Bomb: The Role of Law. University of Calgary - Faculty of Law

19. Future: Conclusions
The promotion of sustainable development through
legal means at national and international levels has led
to recognition of judicial efforts to develop and
consolidate environmental law. The intervention of the
judiciary is necessary to the development of
environmental law, particularly in implementation and
enforcement of laws and regulatory provisions dealing
with environmental conservation and management.
(UNEP: 1998)

20. Environmental
protection and the
conservation of
natural resources
would keep competing
with the commercial
interest worldwide.
The Future: The Conclusion.

21. Case study: Trail Smelter. U.S vs Canada
(1937)
What happened?
The dispute arose as a result of damage occurring in the territory of the US
due to activity of a smelter situated in Canada. The damage arose from
sulphur dioxide fumes which were emitted from the smelter. It was
claimed that the height of stacks increased the area of damage in the US.
In 1927 the US proposed that the matter be referred to the International
Joint Commission for investigation. Its report was presented in 1931. It
determined that up to 1 January 1932 the damages incurred by the US
should be compensated in the sum of US $350,000.
Two years after this Report the US indicated to Canada that damage was still
occurring and negotiations were renewed leading to the signing of the
Convention.

22. (d) what indemnity or compensation
should be paid on account of any
decisions rendered by the
Tribunal?
(c) if so, what measures
or regime should be
adopted or maintained
by the Trail Smelter?
(b) if so, whether the Trail
Smelter should be
required to refrain from
causing damage in the
future and, if so, to what
extent?
(a) whether damage caused by the Trail Smelter has
occurred since 1 January 1932, and if so, what
indemnity should be paid therefore?
Tribunal must decide on
this issues

23. Decisions of the judges
Indemnity and compensation must be paid for UD$ 78.000
Next cases would rely on the decisions of the Supreme Court of U.S.
No State has the right to use or permit the use of its territory in such a manner as to
cause injury by fumes in or to the territory of another or the properties or
persons therein.
Canada was responsible in international law for the conduct of the Trail Smelter.
At the end, Canada paid the United States US$428,000 for damages plus probably
around US$50,000 to pay for scientists and equipment to monitor sulfur emissions
at Trail from 1937 to 1942.

24. Measures that must be adopted…
 The Trail Smelter was to operate with instruments to measure wind
direction and velocity, turbulence, atmospheric temperature, barometric
pressure, and sulfur dioxide concentrations.
It was also given a table of the maximum permissible sulfur emissions
allowable during any time of the day. No matter what weather conditions
prevailed, the smelter was to keep its sulfur dioxide emissions below the
prescribed levels.
Readings of all the instruments maintained by the smelter had to be
submitted monthly to both the Canadian and U.S. Governments.

25. Case Study: Nuclear test case. France vs
Australia 1966 - 1972
What Happened?
Between 1966 and 1972 France had conducted atmospheric tests of nuclear
weapons in the territory of French Polynesia in the South Pacific Ocean.
This had released into the atmosphere radioactive matter.
France created “prohibited zones” for aircraft and “dangerous zones” for
aircraft and shipping, in order to exclude aircraft and shipping from the
area. These zones had been put into effect during the period of testing in
each year in which the tests had been carried out.

27. The tests released into the atmosphere radioactive matter. The main firing site was
Mururoa atoll, 6000 kilometres east of Australia.
Australia said that plenty of the radioactivity fall in his territory.
France replied that the radioative produced by the tests were so infinitesimal that it
was negligible, and that it did not constitute a danger to the health of Australian
population.
In May 1993 Australia instituted proceedings against in the ICJ. It asked for a
declaration that the carrying out of further atmospheric nuclear weapon tests was not
consistent with the applicable rules of international law, and an order that France not
carry out further tests.
France declined to accept the Court’s jurisdiction and did not participate in the
proceedings. The Court ruled however that it had jurisdiction to hear the case.

28. Australia claimed that France had violated the following rights:
1.a right possessed by every state to be free from atmospheric nuclear
tests conducted by any state arising from what is now a generally
accepted rule of customary international law prohibiting all such tests;
1.a right inherent in Australia’s own territorial sovereignity to be free from
the deposit on her territory and dispersion in her air space, without her
consent, of radioactive fall-out from the nuclear tests.

29. But the court…
The Court held that before deciding on the legality of the
tests it needed to examine, as a preliminary matter, the Court
had to decide the true object and purpose of the claim.
THE SOLUTION…
The Court held therefore that, in announcing that the 1974 series of tests would be the
last, the French Government conveyed to the world at large its intention to
terminate the tests. In light of this development Australia’s objective had in effect
been accomplished in as much as France had undertaken to hold no further
atmospheric tests. These declarations had caused the dispute between the parties
to disappear. Therefore, no further judicial action was required as there was nothing
on which to give judgement.

30. Case study: Petroecuador vs People of
Tumaco

31. Thank you!
ANY QUESTION !!!