Threatened Island Nations Legal Implications of Rising Seas and a Changing Climate

Author: Michael B. Gerrard; Gregory E. Wannier
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9781107025769
Published In: March 2013
Format: Hardback , 666 pages
Jurisdiction: International ? Disclaimer:
Countri(es) stated herein are used as reference only

Out of stock

Description
Contents
Author

Details

Rising seas are endangering the habitability and very existence of several small island nations, mostly in the Pacific and Indian oceans. This is the first book to focus on the myriad legal issues posed by this tragic situation: if a nation is under water, is it still a state? Does it still have a seat at the United Nations? What becomes of its exclusive economic zone, the basis for its fishing rights? What obligations do other nations have to take in the displaced populations, and what are these peoples' rights and legal status once they arrive? Should there be a new international agreement on climate-displaced populations? Do these nations and their citizens have any legal recourse for compensation? Are there any courts that will hear their claims, and based on what theories? Leading legal scholars from around the world address these novel questions and propose answers.

• The first book to address the legal issues faced by island nations whose existence is threatened by sea level rise

• Proposes novel legal solutions to new problems

• Aimed specifically at small island nations, but concepts and legal doctrines also apply to larger countries that are facing threats from climate change

Contributors	ix
Preface and Acknowledgments	xvii
Part I: Introduction
1 Overview Gregory E. Wannier and Michael B. Gerrard	3
2 Sea Level Rise in a Changing Climate: What Do We Know? Mary-Elena Carr, Madeleine Rubenstein, Alice Graff, and Diego Villarreal	15
Part II: Sovereignty and Territorial Concerns
3 When Do States Disappear?: Thresholds of Effective Statehood and the Continued Recognition of “Deterritorialized” Island States Jenny Grote Stoutenburg	57
4 The Nation Ex-Situ Maxine A. Burkett	89
5 Introducing the Law of the Sea and the Legal Implications of Rising Sea Levels Ann Powers and Christopher Stucko	123
6 Options to Protect Coastlines and Secure Maritime Jurisdictional Claims in the Face of Global Sea Level Rise Clive Schofield and David Freestone	141
7 Sea Level Rise and Maritime Zones: Preserving the Maritime Entitlements of “Disappearing” States Rosemary Rayfuse	167
Part III: Resettlement Protections and Proposed Solutions
8 Human Rights and Climate Change: Reflections on International Legal Issues and Potential Policy Relevance Siobhán McInerney-Lankford	195
9 Protection of Persons Displaced as a Result of Climate Change: Existing Tools and Emerging Frameworks Michele Klein Solomon and Koko Warner	243
10 “In the Face of Looming Catastrophe”: A Convention for Climate-Change-Displaced Persons David Hodgkinson and Lucy Young	299
11 The National Immigration Policy Option: Limits and Potential Katrina M. Wyman	337
12 Domestic Law for Resettlement of Persons Displaced by Climate Change Leslie A. Stein	369
Part IV: Establishing Accountability
13 Could a Small Island Successfully Sue a Big Emitter?: Pursuing a Legal Theory and a Venue for Climate Justice Jacob David Werksman	409
14 Making Good the Loss: An Assessment of the Loss and Damage Mechanism under the UNFCCC Process Ilona Millar, Catherine Gascoigne, and Elizabeth Caldwell	433
15 Ocean Acidification: International Legal Avenues under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea Dean Bialek and Judah Ariel	473
16 Securing Planetary Life Sources for Future Generations: Legal Actions Deriving from the Ancient Sovereign Trust Obligation Mary Christina Wood, Stephen Leonard, Daniel Bartz, and Nicola Peart	531
17 Transboundary Climate Challenge to Coal: One Small Step against Dirty Energy, One Giant Leap for Climate Justice Maketo Robert, Leonito (Jun) Bacalando Jr., Jasper Teulings, Kristin Casper, Jan Šrytr, and Kristína Šabová	589
Index	627