Environmental Law Commons^™

Maximizing The Potential Of The Paris Agreement: Effective Review Of Action And Support In A Bottom-Up Regime, Harro Van Asselt, Thomas Hale, Meinhard Doelle, Achala Abeysinghe, Manjana Milkoreit, Caroline Prolo, Bryce Rudyk

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

To succeed, the hybrid model of international climate policy embodied in the Paris Agreement requires countries to deliver their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and to progressively increase collective and individual efforts over time. The effectiveness of this type of regime will require international review processes that provide robust information about countries’ efforts and trajectories and give substantial opportunities for state and non-state actor engagement with this information. The Paris Agreement creates three different review processes, but leaves critical details regarding each to future decisions: It provides for a review of implementation of individual NDCs under an “enhanced transparency framework”, comprising …

The Paris Agreement: Historic Breakthrough Or High Stakes Experiment?, Meinhard Doelle

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This article offers an overview of the two key outcomes of the 2015 Paris climate negotiations, the Paris COP decision, and the Paris Agreement. They chart a new course for the UN climate regime that started in earnest in Copenhagen in 2009. The Paris Agreement represents a course away from the top down approach and rigid differentiation among parties reflected in the Kyoto Protocol, toward a bottom up and flexible approach focused on collective long term goals and principles. It represents an approach to reaching these long term goals that is focused on self differentiation, support, transparency and review. The …

Loss And Damage In The Un Climate Regime: Prospects For Paris, Meinhard Doelle

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This paper provides an overview of the Warsaw Mechanism on Loss and Damage and the treatment of the issue under the UNFCCC up to COP 20 in Lima, Peru. The gradual emergence of the issue in the climate negotiations is tracked, leading to the creation of the Warsaw Loss and Damage Mechanism in 2013. The Chapter considers the current state of the issue in the regime, and the prospects for loss and damage in the post 2020 climate regime to be negotiated in Paris in December, 2015.

Reviewing Implementation & Compliance Under The Paris Climate Agreement: Preliminary Thoughts On Process Design For Articles 13-15, Meinhard Doelle

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Articles 13 to 15 of the Paris Climate Agreement establish four key elements of an overall cycle of review as part of the pledge and review approach adopted in the Agreement, a technical review of progress reports filed by Parties, a multilateral review of these progress reports, a global stocktake of progress toward the collective long-term goal, and an implementation and compliance mechanism. The design, timing and sequencing of these reviews will have to be negotiated before the Paris Agreement can be fully operationalized. This working paper considers some of the key issues negotiators will have to consider in designing …

International Environmental And Resources Law 2015 Annual Report, David Hunter

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Between Shale Gas In China And Unconventional Fuel Development In The United States: Water, Environmental Protection, And Sustainable Development, Paolo D. Farah, Riccardo Tremolada

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

China is believed to have the world's largest exploitable reserves of shale gas, although several legal, regulatory, environmental, and investment-related issues will likely restrain its exploitation. China's capacity to face these hurdles successfully and produce commercial shale gas will have a crucial impact on the regional gas market and on China’s energy mix, as Beijing strives to decrease reliance on imported oil and coal, and, at the same time, tries to meet growing energy demand and maintain a certain level of resource autonomy. The development of the unconventional natural gas extractive industry will also provide China with further negotiating power …

Legal Pathways To Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under Section 115 Of The Clean Air Act, Michael Burger, Ann E. Carlson, Michael B. Gerrard, Jayni Foley Hein, Jason A. Schwartz, Keith J. Benes

Faculty Scholarship

Under President Barack Obama the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has promulgated a series of greenhouse gas emissions regulations, initiating the necessary national response to climate change. However, the United States will need to find other ways to reduce GHG emissions if it is to live up to its international emissions reduction pledges, and to ultimately lead the way to a zero-carbon energy future. This paper argues that the success of the recent climate negotiations in Paris provides a strong basis for invoking a powerful tool available to help achieve the country’s climate change goals: Section 115 of the Clean Air …

Contemporary Practice Of The United States Relating To International Law, January 2016, Kristina Daugirdas, Julian Davis Mortenson

Articles

In this section: • United States and France Sign Agreement to Compensate Holocaust Victims • United States Conducts Naval Operation Within Twelve Nautical Miles of Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, Prompting Protests from China • United States Pursues Bilateral and Multilateral Initiatives in and Around the Arctic

Liability And Compensation Due To Transboundary Pollution Caused By Offshore Exploration And Exploitation : Imo Competence And Development Of Guidelines, Sebastian Pizarro Klein

World Maritime University Dissertations

The dissertation is an analysis on the problem of the prevailing legal lacuna regarding responsibility and liability due transboundary offshore pollution. The investigation starts with the examination of the discussion at IMO and its competence to regulate the offshore industry. Afterwards the discussion at the Legal Committee of IMO is analyzed through the different doctrines developed by the authors and the International Court of Justice. Based on a possible competence of the IMO, we introduce the discussion on which international instrument is appropriate to regulate the legal lacuna. Finally, in the concluding chapters, different international instruments are compared highlighting the …

The Role Of The State, Multinational Oil Companies, International Law & The International Community: Intersection Of Human Rights & Environmental Degradation Climate Change In The 21st Century Caused By Traditional Extractive Practices, The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous People And Universal Jurisdiction To Resolve The Accountability Issue, Marcela Cabrera Luna

Master's Theses

Local, national and international conventions that protect indigenous sovereignty and their territories, where many of the resources are extracted from by multinational corporations (MNCs) particularly oil, the number one commodity of the world and cause of climate change, continue to be jeopardized because of the lack of a clear international legal framework that can protect them and potentially hold multinationals accountable for their actions. These practices are causing not only environmental issues to the indigenous and surrounding communities, but climate change is in fact, the real human rights issue of the 21^st century and it affects everyone. By using …

Revising International Law: A Liberal Account Of Natural Resources, Fernando R. Tesón

Scholarly Publications

In this Article, I defend the view that natural resources originally belong to individuals who have legitimately established private property claims over them. Natural resources do not belong to a collective entity such as the people or the state. My argument is simple. Relying on the Lockean contractarian tradition, I argue that individuals must delegate any resource controlled by the state. This is because all powers of the state are, morally, delegated powers. A group's claims over natural resources is entirely derivative of the original claims of its members. Only individuals can originally appropriate natural resources; only they have the …

Uncloaking The Secrecy Behind Large-Scale Land Deals, Jesse Coleman

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Large-scale investments in agriculture and forestry have far-reaching implications for the lives of affected individuals and communities. They are also an integral part of efforts by national governments to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and improve the governance of land resources. Despite their significance, these “land deals” and the contracts that govern them are often cloaked in secrecy, removed from relevant spheres of public scrutiny and debate.

Exploring The Link Between Food Security And Climate Change, Kaitlin Y. Cordes

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Our growing global population is demanding a more resource-intensive and so-called “Western” diet. And that change in demand has drastic impact on how we must change our supply.

Tpp Would Let Foreign Investors Bypass The Canadian Public Interest, Lisa E. Sachs, Lise Johnson

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In early October, prime ministerial candidate Justin Trudeau promised Canadians “a full and open public debate” on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. With 30 chapters that would bind Canada to sweeping agreements on everything from services to intellectual property to the environment to procurement, there is much to debate.

A Comparative Legal Approach For The Risks Of Offshore Methane Hydrates: Existing Laws And Conventions, Roy Andrew Partain

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article provides a review of the existing laws and conventions that might be applied to the development of offshore methane hydrates. Offshore methane hydrates are an exciting emerging new energy resource; one with great potential to provide vast energy supplies, and also one with substantially novel risks and hazards to the environment, marine flora and fauna, and adjacent human communities. Some of these new risks include cataclysmic levels of greenhouse gas emissions, subsea landslides, and tsunamis. As such, it is important to take a survey of the existing laws and conventions that could be applied to such risks, examine …

The Declaration Of Interdependence: A New Declaration To Overthrow The Tyranny Of Small Decisions And Achieve Sustainability, Phillip M. Kannan

Pace Environmental Law Review

Two declarations are the foundation of modern international environmental law and policy: the Stockholm Declaration on the Human Environment and the Rio Declaration on the Environment and Development. Both of these declarations include well-established principles of international environmental law and policy such as state responsibility, territorial sovereignty, the necessity of ecosystem protection, and the importance of international cooperation. In addition, they both embrace revolutionary ideas. For example, the Stockholm Declaration held out the possibility of a human right to a healthy environment and suggested the need to integrate economic development and social development with environmental protection, which is the seed …

Bridging The North-South Divide: International Environmental Law In The Anthropocene, Carmen G. Gonzalez

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article calls for a fundamental reorientation of international environmental law to bridge the North-South divide and respond to the ecological crises of the Anthropocene. Such a reconceptualization of international environmental law must be normatively grounded in respect for nature and in the quest for environmental justice within, as well as between, countries.

International environmental law must directly challenge the relentless drive toward economic expansion and unbridled exploitation of people and nature rather than merely attempt to mitigate its excesses. An essential step toward such a reconceptualization is to examine the ways in which international law has historically engaged with …

International Legal Protection For Climate Refugees: Where Lies The Haven For The Maldivian People?, Simran Dolla

Student Works

Climate change and sea level rise are not just mere words for the Maldivian people; they are a grim reality that is consuming their nation. Sea level rise presents one of the gravest dangers for the Maldives because of its already low-lying characteristics. As the levels continue to rise, the nation is sinking into extinction. Some 300,000 people of the Maldives are on the brink of losing their homes and becoming climate change refugees. The existing international laws are not only ill-equipped to provide protections or the much-needed relief, they also make no mention of climate change refugees. Therefore, as …

Eyes On Bangladesh's Disappearing Coasts: Proposed Constitutional Protections For Coastal Communities Particularly Vulnerable To Climate Change, Sabrina Persaud

Student Works

Climate change, a phenomenon caused by global warming, has impacted just about every part of the earth. As polar ice caps continue to melt, people across the world are experiencing record-breaking heat waves and warmer winters. These erratic weather patterns are just one of the many impacts of climate change. Changes in temperature have altered ecosystems and habitats for terrestrial and marine wildlife, and caused human health to deteriorate. Larger, more industrialized countries are the major contributors to climate change; however, smaller countries, such as Bangladesh, suffer the consequences. This article analyses the negative effects that climate change has had …

Books Received, Georgia Journal Of International And Comparative Law

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Measuring Land Rights For A Sustainable Future, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Jeffrey D. Sachs

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Land rights, both for individuals and for communities, are critical for achieving sustainable development. Security of land tenure and other rights to the land (sometimes held communally rather than individually) can accelerate poverty reduction, strengthen food security, and empower women. Land rights can reduce resource conflicts, as well as encourage the responsible use of natural resources. As the UN member countries begin to implement the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), they should keep land rights in their focus, and measure and protect land rights in order to achieve the SDGs.

Advancing Climate Justice In International Law: An Evaluation Of The United Nations Human Rights-Based Approach, Damilola S. Olawuyi

Florida A & M University Law Review

The term “climate justice” has been traditionally deployed by scholars to emphasize the need for international law to provide legal solutions for direct and disproportionate impacts of climate change on human life and survival, particularly in vulnerable communities. However, with emerging patterns of human rights violations, massive land grabs, forced displacements, marginalization, exclusions, and governmental repressions resulting from climate change response measures and projects (particularly clean development mechanism (CDM), and REDD+ projects), climate justice has increasingly gained a more expansive connotation. Human rights violations and climate injustices resulting from climate change projects have resulted in calls for an international approach …

Session Report - Theme 3: Arctic Governance, Michael Grey

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Session Report - Theme 2: Beyond The Polar Code, Heike Deggim

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Session Report - Theme 1: Polar Code, Jack Westwood-Booth

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Increasing Role And Participation Of Non-Arctic States In The Governance Of Arctic Region: A Sample Of Turkey, Onur Sabri Durak

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Arctic Shipping & Liability For Harm To Natural Resources, Dominik Walkowski

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Ocean Governance In The Arctic : Conflict, Cooperation, Challenges, David Vanderzwaag Ph.D

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Regulatory Developments & Challenges : The Polar Code, Arsenio A. Dominguez

ShipArc 2015 Conference

No abstract provided.

Protecting Ecosystems, Culture, And Human Rights In Chile Through Indigenous And Community-Conserved Territories And Areas, William G. Crowley

Capstone Collection

In environmental conservation circles around the world, the contributions of indigenous peoples and local communities to the sustainable maintenance of ecosystems and natural resources are being given increased attention. Whether for cultural, spiritual, economic, or other purposes, the use of traditional and local knowledge of habitat and resource management is slowly making its way into the modern environmental movement, and is being incorporated into the dominant conservation paradigms. These managed areas, known as Indigenous and Community-Conserved Territories and Areas, or ICCAs, are defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as “natural and/or modified ecosystems containing significant biodiversity …