Alastair Lucas - Böcker

A new phase is emerging in the relationship between energy and resource activities and the communities that are affected by them. Any energy or resource project - a mine, a wind farm, a dam for hydroelectricity, or a shale gas development - will involve a mix of impacts and benefits for communities. For many years, the law has mediated impacts on communities and provided for the distribution of financial benefits. Now, there is growing awareness of the need to consider not only a wider range of costs and benefits for communities from energy and resource projects, but also the effects on communities at multiple scales and in complex ways. Sharing the costs and benefits of natural resource activity has now become a legal requirement for energy and resource projects operating in many jurisdictions, particularly in developing countries. This book uses cases studies from across the globe to examine the emergence of such legal measures, their advantages and disadvantages, and the improvements that may be feasible in the legal frameworks used to distribute the costs and benefits of energy and resources activity. The book has three parts: Part I considers general legal and conceptual frameworks; Part II addresses the mechanisms available to distribute costs and benefits; and Part III considers the role of public engagement and participation in the sharing of the costs and benefits from energy and resource projects.

A new human right of public participation by those affected by natural resource development is set to define major economic developments in the twenty-first century. It is a fundamental part of the international norm of 'sustainable development', designed to harmonize economic betterment and environmental-cultural-social protection for this and succeeding generations. A recognized human right since the 1940s, public participation today is assuming many different legal and political forms - citizen involvement, indigenous peoples' rights, local community rights, sustainable development agreements, public hearings, consultation, advisory councils, right to information, right to justice, decisional transfers, benefits sharing, and more. The right to be heard is a fundamental principle of public law in most of the world's legal systems, but in practice ranges from being deeply ingrained in some cultures to non-existent in others. Understanding this new human dimension in law and development is now essential not only for lawyers but also for companies, governments, international agencies, NGOs, IGOs, and citizens. This book, authored by international resources law experts from all over the world, provides the theoretical and practical guidance essential to understanding and dealing with this new development. Its first section lays out the basics of what is becoming known as public participation law - its origins, history, theories, modern sources, and future directions. The second section presents the international legal authorities. The third section analyzes the current experience and future trends in over a dozen nations and regions of critical resource development interest, from Africa, Australasia, Southeast Asia and China to Europe and North, Central, and South America.

Democratization, globalization, and increased environmental awareness have had a profound impact on the regulation of industry in the energy and natural resources sector. This book analyses the changes in character of the way this industry is regulated, and seeks to make connections with theoretical perspectives on regulation as a major part of the modern legal system.Part I examines the emergence of alternatives to regulation, such as 'soft law' in developing countries, the European Electricity and Gas Directives of 1996 and 1998, the idea of regulation of company structure as opposed to performance, multi-faceted government alternative regulatory instruments, and market mechanics.Part II analyses conventional methods of regulation, and how they have evolved, including case studies from the Netherlands, the USA, Singapore, New Zealand, and the UK.Part III looks at regulatory innovations such as environmental audit, self-regulation, the 'Voluntary Action Plan', private-sector standard setting, and certification.Part IV examines the role of non-state actors, and their response to national and supranational regulatory changes, and globalization.Recent shifts in the perception of energy security, failures in energy company corporate governance, and evolving self-regulatory frameworks renders this a timely and worthy examination of the issues facing the energy and natural resources industry today.

Courts, regulatory tribunals, and international bodies are often seen as a last line of defense for environmental protection. Governmental bodies at the national and provincial level enact and enforce environmental law, and their decisions and actions are the focus of public attention and debate. Court and tribunal decisions may have significant effects on environmental outcomes, corporate practices, and raise questions of how they may best be effectively and efficiently enforced on an ongoing basis.Environment in the Courtroom, Volume II examines major contemporary environmental issues from an environmental law and policy perspective. Expanding and building upon the concepts explored in Environment in the Courtroom, it focuses on issues that have, or potentially could be, the subject of judicial and regulatory tribunal processes and decisions. This comprehensive work brings together leading environmental law and policy specialists to address the protection of the marine environment, issues in Canadian wildlife protection, and the enforcement of greenhouse gas emissions regulation.Drawing on a wide range of viewpoints, Environment in the Courtroom, Volume II asks specific questions about and provides detailed examination of Canada's international climate obligations, carbon pricing, trading and emissions regulations in oil production, agriculture, and international shipping, the protection of marine mammals and the marine environment, Indigenous rights to protect and manage wildlife, and much more. This is an essential book for students, scholars, and practitioners of environmental law.