Is There an Environmental Law?

Summary

• Introduction p2

• The Creation of International Environmental Law p2-3

? Local/Regional Environmental issues p2

? Global Environmental issues p3

? The human activity p4

• The Development of International Environmental Law p4-5

? Stockholm p4

? Rio p5

? Johannesburg p5

• Protection Law p5-8

? Pollution convention p5

? Biodiversity & Endangered Species Convention p6

? Climate Change Convention p7

? Hazardous Wastes & Dumping Convention p8

• Conclusion p9

• Biobliography p10

Introduction

The development of industrialization and the technological advances have taken part in our daily lives. We live in our comfort without worrying about the impact on the environment. ‘The environment is everything surrounded us. It is all natural and artificial elements within which human life unfolds. With the current ecological issues, the term environment currently tends to operate on a growing world. Since appeared pollution, climate change, greenhouse gas and so on ... The concepts of sustainable development and ecology came much later in our vocabularies. We can therefore ask whether there are laws protecting the environment and if their scopes are international. We shall answer to it through an analysis. Our first part will show the causes that pushed to create environmental laws. Our second part will go through the development of those laws. Finally, our last part will cover the law protecting the environment.

I. The Creation of International Environmental Law

1. Local/Regional Environmental issues

Pollution :

Pollution is the introduction of pollutants (chemicals, genetic substances and so on…) in one environment to the point that its effects become harmful to human health but not only, also to other living organisms, the environment or climate. There is many different pollution. This issue can be ranked in the three topic as well as this one than in global environmental issues.

o There is the Diffuse pollution which is a pollution with multiple sources (exhaust, pesticide spraying ..)

o The Chronic pollution is pollution with repeated pollutant emissions, or sometimes when the pollutant is very retentive.

o The pollution on the ground comes from industrial sources may be, due to the presence of a polluting industry failing to take all necessary precautions to prevent leakage, with the massive use of fertilizers or insecticides that seep into the soils.

o These agricultural pollution can have several impacts on health, affecting groundwater in one hand and contaminant bioaccumulation by crops grown on these soils on the other.

o The water pollution can have several causes among industrial farms, industry and sewage.

Nearly 30,000 premature deaths are attributed to air pollution, and between 7 and 20% of cancers are related to environmental factors including chemicals. There are many diseases from polluted water which are still killing millions of people every year in poor countries. It is not only caused by drinking the polluted water but it can also be by simple skin contact with this water.

2. Global Environmental issues

Global Warming

It is the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans. The storage in the atmospheric of greenhouse gases disturbs the Earth's climate. This has lead to very serious distubances : floods, storms, the disappearing of glaciers and polar ice, the rising of sea levels and so on…

Greenhouse gas emissions are concerned:

o Carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide (CO2), mainly from burning fossil fuels and deforestation, ?- methane (CH4) whose main