Alexandre Kiss

International environmental law

Object and characteristics of international environmental law origin and evolution of international environmental law institutional cooperation non-state actors techniques of environmental protection international common law regulation of environmental sectors regulating sources of environmental harm trade and environment compliance with international environmental obligations.

Select Bibliography and Internet Sites

This section presents a list of books and Internet sites relevant to the book Guide to International Environmental Law. The book points out the influence national law has on the emergence of international law and the growing role international norms play in the development and enforcement of national and local environmental policies. It discusses some basic principles of international law, and explains the beginnings to the Stockholm Conference.Keywords: environmental policies; international environmental law; Stockholm Conference

Common Legal Requirements and Implementing Measures

This chapter surveys the legal techniques and procedures that commonly appear in international environmental instruments. Environmental agreements and national laws often regulate a single environmental milieu, e.g., water, air, soil, biological diversity due to the particular environmental problems facing a given area, political or economic priorities, or the ease of achieving consensus on a specific environmental issue. Prior assessment of the environmental impacts of proposed activities originated in the United States in the late 1960s. The duty to prevent environmental harm requires the adoption of measures to avoid harm and reduce or eliminate the risk of harm. Many international agreements dictate or suggest the type or content of implementing laws and regulations deemed necessary or appropriate. Overall, states must make efforts to prevent environmental damage that is foreseeable through the normal operations of an activity or the use of a product and prevent or mitigate accidental transboundary harm.Keywords: environmental agreements; environmental problems; international environmental instruments

International Actors and Stakeholders

This chapter examines briefly the major players in the development and enforcement of international environmental law. In most states, the conduct of foreign relations is the exclusive responsibility of the national authorities and usually is the province of the executive branch. The VCLT reflects this practice by providing that heads of state and foreign ministers have inherent power to conclude treaties by virtue of the official positions they hold. Implementation and enforcement of international agreements often requires action by local authorities, who generally regulate such matters as municipal waste disposal and zoning and enforce the states criminal laws. Different types of international institutions have been assigned roles in the field of environmental protection. The role of transnational civil society has been particularly important in the evolution of international environmental law.Keywords: criminal laws; environmental protection; international environmental law; international financial institutions; transnational civil society; VCLT

Environmental Protection in Other Subject Areas of International Law

The Stockholm Conference raised the profile of environmental issues in the Communities, as it did elsewhere. Shortly after the Conference, in 1974, the European Economic Community (EEC) Commission adopted the first Program of Action on the Environment. Since 1974, the Commission has continued to elaborate periodic Programs of Action of the European Communities on the Environment, although a treaty basis for action was lacking until the Communities merged as a consequence of the Single European Act. Over time, the EC adopted directives of general scope relating to the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. In the Conferences concluding declaration, the participating states referred to the fundamental rights of freedom, equality, and adequate conditions of life in an environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and wellbeing.Keywords: environmental protection; European Economic Community (EEC) Commission; international law; Stockholm Conference

Manual of European Environmental Law.

1. Introduction 2. Fundamental concepts 3. Institutions and agencies 4. The role of the public 5. Techniques of environmental law 6. Biological diversity and the protection of nature 7. Protection of the soil 8. Fresh waters 9. Protection of the marine environment 10. The atmosphere 11. Regulating sources of environmental harm 12. Environmental planning and integrated protection 13. Economic development and environmental protection 14. Conclusion.