Human Rights and the Environment Queen Mary Studies in International Law
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Human Rights and the Environment Queen Mary Studies in International Law Edited by Malgosia Fitzmaurice, Panos Merkouris and Phoebe Okowa VOLUME 3 Human Rights and the Environment Philosophical, Th eoretical and Legal Perspectives By Linda Hajjar Leib LEIDEN • BOSTON 2011 This is an open access title distributed under the terms of the cc-by-nc License, which permits any non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited. An electronic version of this book is freely available, thanks to the support of libraries working with Knowledge Unlatched. More information about the initiative can be found at www.knowledgeunlatched.org. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Leib, Linda Hajjar. Human rights and the environment : philosophical, theoretical, and legal perspectives / by Linda Hajjar Leib. p. cm. -- (Queen Mary studies in international law ; v. 3) Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-90-04-18864-8 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Environmental law, International. 2. Human rights. I. Title. K3585.L445 2011 344.04'6--dc22 2010042485 ISSN 1877-4822 ISBN 978 90 04 18864 8 © Copyright 2011 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. This work is published by Koninklijke Brill NV. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi and Hotei Publishing. Koninklijke Brill NV reserves the right to protect the publication against unauthorized use and to authorize dissemination by means of offprints, legitimate photocopies, microform editions, reprints, translations, and secondary information sources, such as abstracting and indexing services including databases. Requests for commercial re-use, use of parts of the publication, and/or translations must be addressed to Koninklijke Brill NV. This book is printed on acid-free paper and produced in a sustainable manner. Dedicated with love to Mark, Priscilla and Jackson CONTENTS List of Acronyms and Abbreviations ................................................................... ix Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 part one setting the scene Chapter One. Historical and Philosophical Underpinnings of the Environmental Movement .....................................................................11 Introduction ........................................................................................................11 A. Roots of the Environmental Crisis ............................................................11 B. Emergence and Development of Environmentalism ..............................21 C. Major Concepts in Environmental Philosophy .......................................26 D. Internationalisation of Environmental Issues: From the Philosophical Arena to the Legal Arena ..................................36 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................38 Chapter Two. An Overview of the Characteristics and Controversies of Human Rights .......................................................................41 Introduction ........................................................................................................41 A. Th eories of Human Rights: Philosophical and Legal Foundations .......41 B. Human Beings as Rights-Holders ..............................................................43 C. Internationalisation and Universalism of Human Rights ......................45 D. Unity and Indivisibility of Human Rights: Taxonomy of Human Rights ..............................................................................................50 E. Th e Implementation of Human Rights .....................................................57 Conclusion ..........................................................................................................66 part two the conceptualisation and development of environmental issues as human rights Chapter Th ree. Th eorisation of the Various Human Rights Approaches to Environmental Issues ..............................................................71 Introduction ........................................................................................................71 A. Th e Expansion Th eory ................................................................................71 B. Th e ‘Environmental Democracy’ Th eory .................................................81 C. Th e Genesis Th eory .....................................................................................88 Conclusion ........................................................................................................107 viii contents Chapter Four. Reconfi guration of the Human Rights System in Light of Sustainable Development and the Two-Level Conceptualisation of Environmental Rights ................................................109 Introduction ......................................................................................................109 A. Sustainable Development: A Marriage of Convenience between Environment and Development ...............................................110 B. Sustainable Development as a Th eoretical and Normative Framework for the Right to Development and the Right to Environment .................................................................116 C. Reconfi guration of the Human Rights System.......................................122 D. Towards a New Covenant on Environmental Rights ............................136 Conclusion ........................................................................................................155 Conclusion ............................................................................................................157 Bibliography ..........................................................................................................163 Index ......................................................................................................................177 LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ACHR American Convention on Human Rights African Commission African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Banjul Charter African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women CESCR Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights DPSP Directive Principles of State Policy DRTD Declaration on the Right to Development ECHR European Commission on Human Rights ECtHR European Court of Human Rights ESCR Economic, Social and Cultural Rights European Convention European Convention on Human Rights IACHR Inter-American Commission on Human Rights ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ICJ International Court of Justice ILA Declaration International Law Association (ILA) New Delhi Declaration of Principles of International Law Relating to Sustainable Development Inter-American Court Inter-American Court of Human Rights IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IUCN Draft Covenant IUCN Draft International Covenant on Environment and Development MNCs Multinational Corporations OHCHR Offi ce of the High Commissioner for Human Rights OP-ICESCR Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights SERAC Social and Economic Rights Action Centre UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development UNEP United Nations Environment Programme x list of acronyms and abbreviations UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Cli - mate Change UNHRC United Nations Human Rights Committee WSSD World Summit on Sustainable Development 1994 Draft Declaration 1994 Draft Declaration of Principles on Human Rights and the Environment INTRODUCTION “We are not expendable. We are not fl owers to be off ered at the altar of profi t and power. We are dancing fl ames committed to conquering darkness. We are challeng- ing those who threaten the survival of the planet and the magic and mystery of life.”1 Rachida Bee, Bhopal, India Humankind all over the world is confronting tremendous environmental chal- lenges in the form of global warming, pollution, loss of biodiversity, deforesta- tion and desertifi cation. Th e deepening ecological crisis our generation is witnessing is likely only to get worse. According to the 2006 Living Planet Report, “the Earth’s regenerative capacity can no longer keep up with demand—people are turning resources into waste faster than nature can turn waste back into resources. Humanity is no longer living off nature’s interest but drawing down its capital.”2 To date, global environmental issues have largely been dealt with through the machinery of international environmental law. However, even with a plethora of international environmental treaties and declarations as well as domestic environmental laws and policies,3 one might ask what else can be done to reverse the destruction of natural ecosystems and to protect human beings, especially the most disadvantaged and vulnerable communities of the world, from the devastating eff ects of environmental despoliation. Of course, there is no one way to deal with such a complex and global prob- lem as environmental degradation. While the primary aim of environmental law is the regulation of environment-related activities, the human rights sys- tem carries the potential to address the eff ects of environmental degradation