Island nations take legal action to protect the oceans – liberation

Climate experiments, which are building up around the world, take on a new aspect on Monday, September 11th: protecting the oceans. During a historic hearing at the United Nations International Maritime Law Tribunal based in Hamburg, Germany, island nations will take on the nations that emit the most greenhouse gases. An unprecedented court case to demand acceleration of the fight against climate change that is disturbing the oceans.

For two days, the countries concerned – notably the Bahamas, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Antigua and Barbuda – hoped to convince the court that greenhouse gases fall under the category of “marine pollution” within the meaning of the UN Convention on Human Rights. The sea.. Such a designation would legally require the 157 countries that have ratified this treaty to take further legislative measures against global warming.

The agreement requires the signatory states Take the necessary measures to prevent, reduce and control pollution of the marine environment, and protect and preserve this environment.. that it “marine pollution” everyone Human introduction, directly or indirectly, of materials or energy into the marine environment […] that cause or are likely to cause adverse effects.”according to this text. The description that applies in this case, according to the applicants.

Towards a new qualification?

Entire marine and coastal ecosystems are currently dying, due to warming and acidifying waters.warns the Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Kossia Natano. “The science is clear and indisputable: these effects are the result of climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions”, he added. Such a qualification would have a huge impact. “The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea is highly respected. This will affect the interpretation of the Convention by all national courts.explains Hannah Craft, a spokesperson for the group. Her Foreign Secretary Simon Coffey’s poignant speech, delivered with his feet in the water during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), had already warned of rising sea levels.

“If this case works, countries will have to take serious action on greenhouse gas emissions that pollute the oceans.”I assure the requesting states in a press release. Representatives of these island nations and 34 other signatories, most notably France and Germany, are set to be heard before the ruling, expected in 2024.

“Without swift and ambitious action, climate change may prevent my children and grandchildren from living on their ancestral island, our home.”This worried the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Alfonso Brown. “We cannot remain silent in the face of this injustice.” Seas bear the brunt of climate change. And at the beginning of April, the surface waters of the world’s seas recorded an average temperature of 21.1 degrees Celsius, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). record since records began in 1981.

Climate change in the courts

In recent years, governments have increasingly taken legal action against climate inaction, sometimes succeeding in influencing climate policies. The number of climate-related court cases around the world doubled between 2017 and 2022, according to the United Nations Environment and researchers at Columbia University. As of September 2023, more than 2,500 cases have been listed worldwide, including more than 1,600 in the United States.

International courts are therefore increasingly mobilized. In March, the UN General Assembly applied to the International Court of Justice for clarification “Commitments” Countries concerned about climate change, at the request of Vanuatu, a small island in Oceania. According to estimates, half of its capital could be under water by 2050. The countdown has begun.