Environmental Law

Abstract

Trusted by generations of students and academics alike, Environmental Law continues to provide, in its ninth edition, broad and comprehensive coverage of the key topics taught on most environmental law courses, explaining the subject in its social and political context, and considering both UK, EU, and international perspectives. Known for its clear structure and systematic approach, the book considers topics by theme and by sector, allowing more experienced readers to explore the intricacies of the subject while also providing a logical introduction for those new to environmental law or without a legal background. A clear and easy-to-understand writing style helps ensure readers are informed yet not overwhelmed, while useful diagrams and tables help to explain complex points. The new edition also features case studies, information boxes, and self-test questions to help draw out key points and consolidate your learning in preparation for assessments and further research. New to this edition are: discussions of the potential impact of Brexit on UK environmental law; an additional chapter discussing the regulation of new technologies, such as ‘fracking’; coverage of important cases such as Coventry v. Lawrence on nuisance, Walton, Champion, and the HS2 decision on environmental assessment, the ClientEarth air pollution litigation and the ICJ’s decision in Costa Rica v. Nicaragua; analysis of the Paris Agreement and other recent climate change developments; analysis of the new EIA Directive; discussion on the new sentencing guidelines; and enhanced coverage of the latest developments in respect to costs of litigation and the role of courts, the Aarhus Convention, and environmental rights.

Seven good practices for the environmental licensing of coastal interventions: Lessons from the Italian, Cuban, Spanish and Colombian regulatory frameworks and insights on coastal processes

“…Among the countries analyzed, Cuba is the only one without guidelines, having only the indications about the EIS content in Chapter III of Resolution 132/2009. However, in all four countries, this legal indication concerns the structure of the document rather than details about characterizing the environment, methodologies for defining the influence area and evaluating impacts, or parameters for monitoring (Toro et al, 2010;Bell et al, 2017). Regarding the structure of the EIS content, some differences among countries have been found.…”

Impediments to achieving integrated marine management across borders: The case of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive

“…Any disputes between signatories to the Regional Seas Conventions are handled through bilateral arbitration 13 . This is in contrast to EU law in which failures to implement legislation ultimately results in infraction proceedings under the auspices of the European Court of Justice (Bell et al, 2017).…”

Plastic ‘Highways’ to the Sea: The Problem of Litter in English Inland Waterways

“…Litter, however, typically does not fall within the scope of its activities. This is despite the fact that, as stated by Bell et al (2017), 'numerous substances can have a damaging impact on water quality in sufficient quantities'. The focus on the quality of the water rather than the qualities of all pollutants which enter internal waterways, typically means that less harmful substances such as litter do not have sufficiently serious adverse effects in the environment to trigger applicability.…”

“…It could be argued, however, that accumulations of litter for amenity purposes could amount to a statutory nuisance (see the EPA 1990, s79(1)(e) 'any accumulation or deposit which is prejudicial to health or a nuisance') or cause water pollution. Bell et al (2017) note that different factors come into play in determining whether specific items will cause water pollution and have a 'synergistic' effect whereby factors such as location, amount of oxygen and the existence of other pollutants will determine the effect of the pollution. The difficulty is that the existing legal framework does not fully address circumstances where non-hazardous material mixes with other materials and becomes toxic in nature.…”