Request for an Advisory Opinion submitted by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law
Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere are pollution of the marine environment under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which states must take all necessary measures to prevent, reduce and control.
Facts
A commission of small island states, which are particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels and ocean warming, asked the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for an advisory opinion on the obligations of states parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in relation to climate change. The questions concerned the obligations to prevent, reduce and control pollution of the marine environment, and to protect and preserve the marine environment from the effects of climate change.
Legal principle
The tribunal unanimously held that anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere constitute pollution of the marine environment within the meaning of the Convention. States parties have specific obligations to take all necessary measures to prevent, reduce and control such pollution, which is an obligation of due diligence, and the standard of due diligence is stringent, given the high risks of serious and irreversible harm. The obligations under the Convention are not satisfied simply by complying with the Paris Agreement. The opinion was the first by an international court on climate change.
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