Change (UNFCCC)
10 ; the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
(UNCCD)
11 ; and the so-called Straddling Fish Stocks Agreement.
12
Apart from these conventions, the Rio Summit furthermore established the
principle of sustainable development. Drawing from the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), chaired by Gro Harlem
Brundtland, entitled Our Common Future (oftentimes referred to as the Brundtland
Report),
13 sustainable development is defined as ‘development that meets the needs
of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs.’ In order to achieve this, the principle of sustainable development
includes several sub-principles: sustainable use, which is as such not a new principle
but for the first time integrated in an international legal framework; intergenerational
equity; and integration of environment and development.
The principle of intergenerational equity sees one generation merely being
entrusted with a certain wealth the same amount of which (if not more) it would
pass on to the next generation. Very closely hand in hand, yet conceptually different,
is the principle of intragenerational equity, which sees the same logic between
different peoples of the same generation. The principle of sustainable use, a key
principle in the contexts of marine mammals, sees that resources are used in a
sustainable manner, avoiding overexploitation and resource depletion. No commonly accepted definition of this principle exists and it appears in different
forms—for instance wise use, rational use, sound environmental management—in
environmental law.
The principle of sustainable development is also referred to as the ‘precautionary
principle’ or the ‘precautionary approach.’ In essence this means that when it comes
to the exploitation of natural resources, a level of precaution is to be applied: if
scientific evidence is uncertain, it is better to refrain from a certain activity rather
than risking environmental damage. While in theory logical and comprehensible, in
practice different countries attach different values to scientific uncertainty, reach
different results or interpret scientific findings differently. Perhaps even more so,
scientific results are seen through a political lens. This is also the case for marine
mammals, and in particular whales and whaling (see Sect. 5.3.4). Consequently, a
scientific reality or ‘truth’ which different actors interpret through different lenses is
difficult to establish.
14 Instead, I would rather consider scientific findings part of
different realities that generate different truths for countries and peoples all over the
world.
10 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 9 May 1992 (1771 UNTS 107).
11 United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought
and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa, 17 June 1994 (1954 UNTS 3).
12 United Nations Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and
Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, 4 August 1995 (2167
UNTS 88).
13 WCED (1987).
14 Heazle (2006).
1.4 The Basics of International Environmental Law
9
10 ; the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
(UNCCD)
11 ; and the so-called Straddling Fish Stocks Agreement.
12
Apart from these conventions, the Rio Summit furthermore established the
principle of sustainable development. Drawing from the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), chaired by Gro Harlem
Brundtland, entitled Our Common Future (oftentimes referred to as the Brundtland
Report),
13 sustainable development is defined as ‘development that meets the needs
of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs.’ In order to achieve this, the principle of sustainable development
includes several sub-principles: sustainable use, which is as such not a new principle
but for the first time integrated in an international legal framework; intergenerational
equity; and integration of environment and development.
The principle of intergenerational equity sees one generation merely being
entrusted with a certain wealth the same amount of which (if not more) it would
pass on to the next generation. Very closely hand in hand, yet conceptually different,
is the principle of intragenerational equity, which sees the same logic between
different peoples of the same generation. The principle of sustainable use, a key
principle in the contexts of marine mammals, sees that resources are used in a
sustainable manner, avoiding overexploitation and resource depletion. No commonly accepted definition of this principle exists and it appears in different
forms—for instance wise use, rational use, sound environmental management—in
environmental law.
The principle of sustainable development is also referred to as the ‘precautionary
principle’ or the ‘precautionary approach.’ In essence this means that when it comes
to the exploitation of natural resources, a level of precaution is to be applied: if
scientific evidence is uncertain, it is better to refrain from a certain activity rather
than risking environmental damage. While in theory logical and comprehensible, in
practice different countries attach different values to scientific uncertainty, reach
different results or interpret scientific findings differently. Perhaps even more so,
scientific results are seen through a political lens. This is also the case for marine
mammals, and in particular whales and whaling (see Sect. 5.3.4). Consequently, a
scientific reality or ‘truth’ which different actors interpret through different lenses is
difficult to establish.
14 Instead, I would rather consider scientific findings part of
different realities that generate different truths for countries and peoples all over the
world.
10 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 9 May 1992 (1771 UNTS 107).
11 United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought
and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa, 17 June 1994 (1954 UNTS 3).
12 United Nations Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and
Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, 4 August 1995 (2167
UNTS 88).
13 WCED (1987).
14 Heazle (2006).
1.4 The Basics of International Environmental Law
9