International Law Obligations on Climate Change Mitigation

1. Auflage 2022
ISBN: 978-0-19-284366-1
Verlag: Sydney University Press

Buch, Englisch, 416 Seiten, Format (B × H): 163 mm x 241 mm, Gewicht: 785 g

Reihe: Oxford Monographs in International Law

Recent years have witnessed exciting developments in international negotiations, litigation, and scholarship about climate change, but doctrinal research in the field remains in its infancy. In particular, little is known about how fast states are required to limit and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

The first part of the book identifies the relevant obligations through an analysis of treaties, custom, and other sources of international law. Beyond express quantified commitments contained for instance in nationally determined contributions, the book sheds light on the existence of general obligations of due diligence. While these general obligations are difficult to interpret, they are often more demanding.

The second part explores how these general obligations can be applied objectively, for instance by a court, in concrete cases. Instead of an improbable judicial assessment of a state's requisite level of mitigation action, the book shows the possibility of assessing a state's conduct based on the measures that general mitigation obligations entail. These measures relate to corollary duties of cooperation, vigilance, and consistency.

This book presents a first comprehensive doctrinal study of states' obligations on climate change mitigation. It shows that such obligations arise not only from climate treaties, but also from customary international law, unilateral declarations, and, possibly, human rights treaties. It also explores the interactions between these multiple obligations.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Mayer, Benoit

Fachgebiete

• Rechtswissenschaften Öffentliches Recht Umweltrecht Umweltrecht allg., Technikrecht, Immissionsschutzrecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Internationales Recht und Europarecht Internationales Recht Internationales Verwaltungs-, Umwelt- und Gesundheitsrecht
• Rechtswissenschaften Öffentliches Recht Energierecht

Über Autor(innen)

Benoit Mayer is Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, where he teaches environmental and international law. He is a member of the UNFCCC roster of experts, and received the International and Comparative Law Quarterly's 2019 Young Scholar Prize. His research explores various aspects of the international law on climate change, ranging from the concept of climate migration to the application of customary and human rights
law.