Although the climate crisis is the result of a failure to prevent environmental harm, the principle of prevention has thus far remained discrete in domestic climate litigation.Similarly, in the context of international climate adjudication, reliance on the prevention principle could seem limited by two main obstacles: its anchor in bilateralism and its normative indeterminacy. This article argues that, on the contrary, the prevention principle could serve important functions in international climate adjudication. First, it shows that climate change falls within the reach of the prevention principle, which aims to protect the environment per se as a community interest. Then it explores two argumentative scenarios that are based on different constructions of the prevention principle, conceived either as a customary duty or as a general principle of international law. In both cases, recourse to the prevention principle can offer numerous advantages, which vary depending on the objectives strategically pursued.
This article attempts to investigate the significance and implications of the United States’ decision to withdraw from and cease implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change, as announced in the statement released by President Trump on 1 June 2017. It is argued that that decision risks giving rise to a serious setback for the international protection of climate. Yet, the Parties to the Paris Agreement have so far been reluctant to react to the United States’ conduct. In particular, since the United States withdrawal could not have effect before 4 November 2020, the cessation of implementation of the Paris Agreement has already resulted in a wrongful act, at least as regards the obligation to pursue domestic mitigation measures with the aim of achieving the objectives of the nationally determined contributions. Should the Parties to the Paris Agreement invoke the responsibility of the United States, they would eventually face the need to solve certain difficulties emerging from the application of the general rules concerning State responsibility to a case relevant to climate change, because the implementation mechanism of the Paris Agreement would prove to be inadequate owing to its facilitative nature.
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