Environmental Treaties

Abstract

Environmental issues inherently transcend geopolitical boundaries, and the need for international mechanisms to address planetary problems has become increasingly salient. International environmental agreements have grown exponentially since the 1970s. According to a recent estimate from the United Nations Environment Programme, world leaders have signed up to over 500 internationally recognized agreements, including 61 atmosphere related; 155 biodiversity related; 179 related to chemicals, hazardous substances, and waste; 46 land conventions; and 196 conventions that are broadly related to issues dealing with water. Following trade, environment is now the most common area of global rule making. Global environmental agreements are formulated, ratified, and implemented through a highly complex set of circumstances that often defy systematic inquiry. The key protagonists in the environmental treaty-making system include governmental leaders and special-interest groups (such as environmental organizations, industry associations, and scientific organizations). Our aim in this article is to provide sources that cover this full panorama of stakeholders rather than particular legalistic treatises (which are better covered within the International Law category of Oxford Bibliographies in an entry by Ole Kristian Fauchald on Multilateral Environmental Agreements). The coverage provided here focuses on the process by which environmental science has been operationalized in the treaty-making process.

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DOI

10.1093/obo/9780199363445-0030

Journal

Environmental Science

Year

2015