The New Accountability: Environmental Responsibility Across Borders

Front Cover
Earthscan, 2005 - Law - 205 pages
The growth of pollution that crosses national borders represents a significant threat to human health and ecological sustainability. Various international agreements exist between countries to reduce risks to their populations, however there is often a mismatch between national territories of state responsibility and transboundary hazards. All too often, state priorities do not correspond to the priorities of the people affected by pollution, who often have little recourse against major polluters, particularly transnational corporations operating across national boundaries. Drawing on case studies, The New Accountability provides a fresh understanding of democratic accountability for transboundary and global harm and argues that environmental responsibility should be established in open public discussions about harm and risk. Most critically it makes the case that, regardless of nationality, affected parties should be able to demand that polluters and harm producers be held accountable for their actions and if necessary provide reparations.
 

Contents

Introduction
1
Transnational Accountability for Environmental Harm
16
Advocates for Environmental Accountability
41
Citizenship Beyond National Borders?
67
The World Trade Regime and Environmental Accountability
88
Transnational Liability for Environmental Damage
113
The Environmental Accountability of Transnational Corporations
144
Conclusion
167
References
178
Index
197
Copyright

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Page 200 - Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea, 1996 or of any amendment or Protocol thereto.

About the author (2005)

Michael Mason is Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environment, London School of Economics and author of Environmental Democracy (1999)