Environmental Law and Sustainability in the Asia Pacific
OXFORD HANDBOOK ON INTERNATIONAL LAW IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC, Simon Chesterman and Ben Saul eds, Oxford University Press, Forthcoming
22 Pages Posted: 22 Feb 2018
Date Written: February 21, 2018
Abstract
The focus of this chapter is on the development and implementation of the international and regional instruments (multi-lateral environmental agreements, or MEAs) and policies concerning the environment and natural resources across the sub-regions of the Asia-Pacific, in the context of the continuing debate on ecological sustainability. Many of these instruments and policies have shaped national environmental law responses in the region from the 1970s. The two most recent are the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their associated SDG Targets, both agreed in 2015.
The six subregions addressed in this chapter are Central Asia, South Asia, Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, Mekong Basin (which overlaps with Southeast Asia) and the Pacific (primarily the developing island countries). Australia and New Zealand are briefly canvassed where appropriate, as part of the Pacific sub-region. The chapter examines the functions of the more important regional institutions together with their associated legal frameworks and soft law instruments for each of the Asia Pacific’s subregions.
Keywords: international environmental law, regional environmental law, fragmentation, Asian region, Pacific region, sustainable development goals, regional environmental institutions
JEL Classification: K10, K30
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation