Principles of International Environmental Law

Principles of International Environmental Law

Subject: Environment

Section

General Principles of Environmental Law

1. Sovereignty and Responsibility Principle

• International environmental law has developed between two contradicting principles.
• First principle is that states’ have sovereign rights over their natural resources.
• Second, states should not damage to the environment.
• However, the concept of sovereignty is not absolute, and state’s general duty is not to cause environmental damage to the environment of other states.
• 1992 Rio Declaration stated that: “states have, in accordance with principles of international law, the sovereign right to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own environmental and developmental policies, and the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other states or areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction

2. The Precautionary Principle

• The precautionary principle requires that, if there is a strong suspicion that a certain activity may have environmentally harmful consequences, it is better to control that activity now rather than to wait for incontrovertible scientific evidence
• This principle is expressed in the Rio Declaration, which stipulates in principle 15 Rio Declaration, where there are “threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation

3. The Prevention Principle

• Under this rule, a state is under the obligation to prevent damage within its own jurisdiction. Preventing environmental harm is cheaper, easier, and less environmentally dangerous than reacting to environmental harm that already has taken place.
• The prevention principle is the fundamental notion behind laws regulating the generation, transportation, treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste and laws regulating the use of pesticides.

4. The “Polluter Pays” Principle

• The “polluter pays” principle has been a dominant concept in environmental law. A state responsible for a violation of international law has to stop the injurious conduct which may be a cause for damage environment and revised the condition that existed prior to the wrongful conduct.
• According to this principle if the state cannot to re-establish the condition due to its impossibility, the state should pay compensation.

5. Sustainable Development Principle

• The principle of sustainable development has been defined by the 1987 Brundtland Reportas a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
• Sustainable development, as reflected in international agreements, encompasses at least three elements: (i) intergenerational equity (ii) sustainable use of natural resources (iii) integration of environment and development.