International Court of Justice climate ruling should include legal duty to protect climate-stabilizing biodiversity.

Posted on July, 24 2024

GLAND, Switzerland (16 July 2024): WWF has made a submission to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to contribute to the formation of their advisory opinion on climate change.

 

WWF’s submission emphasizes that countries also have a legal duty to protect and restore biodiversity, in addition to the obligation to tackle the climate crisis, recognizing that biodiversity is both threatened by rising emissions, and also part of the solution to securing a stable climate.

 

In March 2023, following a campaign led by Vanuatu, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the ICJ on the obligations of countries to address the climate crisis under international law. It also asked the Court to consider the legal consequences of failing to act.

 

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal, WWF Global Climate and Energy Lead, and COP20 President, said:

“There are already legal obligations for countries to tackle the climate crisis, in addition to the economic, social, environmental and humanitarian imperatives. The Court’s opinion has the potential to establish this in international law with more authority than any previous court ruling on climate change. With most countries falling far short of their obligations to reduce emissions and protect and restore nature, this advisory opinion has the potential to send a powerful legal signal that states need to fulfil duties to act. 

 

“WWF hopes to encourage the Court and countries making their own submissions to recognise that nature is a climate ally, and that action to protect our natural world must take place in parallel with action to reduce emissions, to ensure we have a living planet for future generations.”

 

The WWF submission emphasizes that biodiversity loss impacts humanity’s ability to mitigate the effects of climate change itself. Certain ecosystems and species play a significant role in the removal and sequestration of CO2 from the atmosphere and can reduce the risks associated with natural disasters exacerbated by climate change.

 

It also highlights that climate and nature action are essential to ensure that existing international human rights law obligations are upheld. These include the right to a healthy environment, the right to health and life, the right to an adequate standard of living including food and water, and the right to non-discrimination.

 

With regard to the consequences for states who do not fulfil their obligations, WWF calls on the Court to establish a duty for countries to stop harming nature, and adopt the “polluter pays” principle in the compensation of states that have suffered significant, often irreversible damage, resulting from pollution by greenhouse gas emissions. WWF also encourages all countries to take immediate measures to ensure their compliance with their international obligations to preserve, protect, and restore biodiversity, and the compliance of other countries. 

 

When the ICJ publishes its final opinion, it will add to other significant legal rulings from international and national courts that have underlined the legal obligations of states to act on climate and nature. One example is the recent ruling by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (which WWF also made a submission to) which found that states have a legal obligation to tackle the climate crisis to preserve marine ecosystems. Another is the European Court of Human Rights that found human rights were being compromised due to lack of climate action. 

Edie Hofmeister, Co-Chair of the International Bar Association (IBA) Business Human Rights Committee, said: ​“In the wake of other significant international rulings that we’ve seen this year, including the ITLOS Advisory Opinion on Climate Change and judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland, the ICJ Advisory Opinion represents a further example of international courts being used as a tool to clarify states’ obligations with respect to climate change under international law, and to identify the legal consequences of failing to fulfil such obligations.”

 

WWF was assisted with its submission to the ICJ by international law firm Squire Patton Boggs and barristers from 20 Essex Street, Matrix Chambers, Brick Court Chambers, Doughty Street Chambers and No 5 Chambers.
 

NOTE:  

  1. As WWF is not a country, it does not have legal standing before the Court. But its statement will be made available for all countries and the ICJ itself to consider.
  2. The ICJ announced on 12 April 2024 that it had received 91 submissions from countries, the highest number of written statements ever to have been filed in advisory proceedings before the Court.
  3. The ICJ indicated it may make the written statements accessible to the public on or after the opening of the oral proceedings in the case. No date is yet set for the oral proceedings.
  4. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. 

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For interviews and further information on WWF’s submission, contact: