Abstract
The second chapter introduces the system of ‘state responsibility.’ Since this chapter covers legal responsibility for climate change, the concept of state responsibility is analyzed with regard to the legal consequences of state conduct for climate change. Thus, the chapter draws on the work of the International Law Commission (ILC). Establishing international responsibility serves as a ground for the discourse in how far international responsibility reaches. The legal consequences deriving from state responsibility will be analyzed later in Chap. 5.
The concept of state responsibility, in which most of the analysis is embedded, requires examining the legal regulations deductively. This means that an internationally wrongful act has to be committed, i.e. a violation of an international obligation. From thereon, the particular primary norm of international law is then scrutinized as to whether the conduct in question qualifies as a violation of the norm. However, the issue of climate conflicts requires an inductive approach, which means the facts are not clearly determined yet. This impediment would actually require to establish the facts and to then analyze whether or not the situation is included in a particular regulation of international law. The same challenge occurred with the drafting of a definition of climate conflicts, mentioned above. Having state responsibility on the one side, which requires working deductively, and the scenario of climate conflicts on the other side, which is alien to international law to date and thus requires to be established inductively, bears methodological difficulties. For reasons of clarity, state responsibility is thus introduced in a separate chapter and not embedded in the analysis of a violation of a primary norm. This would have led to an excessive complexity of Chap. 4. Instead, the analysis of international environmental law is now ‘framed’ by state responsibility, with the preconditions of state responsibility in the introduction of state responsibility and the legal consequences of state responsibility following the analysis of international environmental law.
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Notes
- 1.
- 2.
- 3.
Customary international law refers to the unwritten legal regulations in the international context. In the international context, contrary to domestic legal systems, customary law plays a major role; it is referred to as ‘[…] a dynamic source of law in the light of nature of the international system and its lack of centralized government.’ See: Shaw (2008), p. 73; regarding the controversies evolving around customary law, see: D’Amato (1971).
- 4.
Stein and Buttlar (2009), p. 400.
- 5.
Brownlie (2008), p. 434.
- 6.
Herdegen (2009), p. 395.
- 7.
Amerasinghe (2005), p. 5.
- 8.
Crawford (2002), p. 1.
- 9.
Shaw (2008), p. 119.
- 10.
- 11.
Statute of the International Law Commission, 1947-11-21 [GA Resolution 174 (II)].
- 12.
The procedure was followed in drafting the Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1958, the Convention on Diplomatic Relations in 1961, the Convention on Consular Relations in 1963, the Convention on Special Missions in 1969, and the Convention on the Law of Treaties in 1969. See: Shaw (2008), p. 120.
- 13.
Zemanek (2000), p. 221.
- 14.
Hereinafter, the Draft Articles on State Responsibility by the International Law Commission will be referred to as the ‘ILC-DASR.’
- 15.
Hiller (1998), p. 321.
- 16.
Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts, UN-Resolution GA Res. 56/83 12.12.2001.
- 17.
Yarwood (2011), p. 78.
- 18.
Parry and Grant (2004), p. 482.
- 19.
Stein and Buttlar (2009), p. 400.
- 20.
Cassese (2005), p. 244.
- 21.
Fitzmaurice (2007), p. 1016.
- 22.
Brownlie (2008), p. 435.
- 23.
Fitzmaurice (2007), p. 1016. ‘[…] Rules of international law can be divided into two: the one is the rules which, one sector of international relations or another, impose particular obligations on states, and which may be termed ‘primary’ rules, and the other is concerned with determining consequences of failure to fulfill obligations established by the primary rules, and which may hence be termed ‘secondary’ rules, the field of responsibility being covered by the latter.’ See: Matsui (2002), pp. 3–4.
- 24.
Crawford (2002), p. 16.
- 25.
Yearbook ILC Volume II Part 2 2001, p. 31.
- 26.
Yearbook ILC Volume II Part 1 1963, p. 228.
- 27.
Crawford (2002), p. 76.
- 28.
Fitzmaurice (2007), p. 1012.
- 29.
Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage, Vienna 21 May 1963, in force 12 November 1977 [1063 UNTS 265; 2 ILM 727 (1963)].
- 30.
Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects, 1972-03-29, in force 1972-09-01 [961 UNTS 187; 24 UST 2389; 10 ILM 965 (1971)].
- 31.
The Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities, Wellington 2 June 1988.
- 32.
International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea (HNS Convention), 1996-05-03 [35 ILM 1415 (1996)].
- 33.
Convention on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy (Paris Convention), 1960-07-29, in force 1968-04-01 [956 UNTS 251; 55 AJIL 1082 (1960)].
- 34.
Convention on Civil Liability for Damage resulting from Activities Dangerous to the Environment (Lugano Convention), Lugano 21/6/1993 [ETS No. 150]. The Lugano Convention on Civil Liability for Damages Resulting from the Exercise of Activities Dangerous for the Environment from 1993 is a European convention. However, the convention is open for signing and ratification through other states as well.
- 35.
The condition to enter into force is three ratifications. To date, no state ratified the Lugano Convention; see: http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/ChercheSig.asp?NT=150&CM=3&DF=&CL=ENG.
- 36.
Trail Smelter Arbitration (United States v. Canada), 1938, 1941, 3 RIAA 1907 (1941), p. 4.
- 37.
Corfu Channel Case (U.K. v. Albania), Judgment, ICJ Reports 1949, p. 4.
- 38.
United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Teheran, Judgment, ICJ Reports 1980, p. 3.
- 39.
Cassese (2005), p. 245.
- 40.
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Montego Bay 10 December 1982, in force 16 November 1994, [1833 UNTS 3/[1994] ATS 31/21 ILM 1261 (1982)].
- 41.
Convention on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy (Paris Convention), 1960-07-29, in force 1968-04-01 [956 UNTS 251; 55 AJIL 1082 (1960)].
- 42.
Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, Basel 22 Mar 1989, in force 5 May 1992 [1673 UNTS 57; [1992] ATS 7; 28 ILM 657 (1989)].
- 43.
Bamako Convention on the ban on the Import into Africa and the Control of Transboundary Movement and Management of Hazardous Wastes within Africa, Bamako 30 January 1991, in force 22 April 1998.
- 44.
Lusaka Agreement on Cooperative Enforcement Operations Directed at Illegal Trade in Wild Fauna and Flora, 1994, in force 10 December 1996.
- 45.
Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law, Strasbourg 4 November 1998 [ETS No. 172].
- 46.
The PCIJ is the predecessor of the ICJ and worked from 1922 until 1946.
- 47.
Crawford (2002), p. 77.
- 48.
Crawford (2002), p. 77.
- 49.
Cassese (2005), p. 251.
- 50.
Crawford (2002), p. 81.
- 51.
Interpretation of Peace Treaties with Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania, Second Phase, Advisory Opinion, ICJ Reports 1950, p. 221.
- 52.
Yearbook ILC Volume II Part 2 2001, p. 33.
- 53.
Yearbook ILC Volume II Part 2 2001, p. 34.
- 54.
Brownlie (2008), p. 443.
- 55.
Crawford (2002), p. 76.
- 56.
Louka (2006), p. 468.
- 57.
Crawford (2002), p. 124.
- 58.
Crawford (2002), p. 125.
- 59.
Crawford (2002), p. 125.
- 60.
Rainbow Warrior Case (New Zealand v. France), 1990, 82 ILR, 499, p. 251.
- 61.
Fitzmaurice (2007), p. 1014.
- 62.
In the following, the Draft Articles on the Prevention of Transboundary Harm from Hazardous Activities are referred to as ‘ILC-DAPTH.’
- 63.
- 64.
Crawford (2002), p. 135.
- 65.
Shaw (2008), p. 124.
- 66.
Crawford (2002), pp. 246, 247.
- 67.
Ibid., p. 246.
- 68.
Zwanenburg (2005), p. 220.
- 69.
Yarwood (2011), p. 79.
- 70.
On the debate regarding international crime and peremptory norms, see: Shaw (2008), pp. 807, 808.
- 71.
Yarwood (2011), p. 79.
- 72.
Ibid., p. 84.
- 73.
Shaw (2008), p. 124.
- 74.
Tams (2005), pp. 118, 119.
- 75.
- 76.
Tams (2005), p. 120.
- 77.
Barcelona Traction, Light and Power Company, Limited (Belgium v. Spain), Judgment, ICJ Reports 1970, p. 3 at p. 32, para. 34.
- 78.
Ibid.
- 79.
See: Case Concerning the Gabčíkovo-Nagymaros Project (Hungary v. Slovakia), Judgment, ICJ Reports 1997, p. 39, para. 14.
- 80.
Kiss and Shelton (2007), p. 15.
- 81.
Tams (2005), p. 310.
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Christiansen, S.M. (2016). State Responsibility. In: Climate Conflicts - A Case of International Environmental and Humanitarian Law. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27945-9_3
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