Detonating the Global Climate Change Time Bomb: The Role of Law

Scientists have continued to warn that the world stands the risk of witnessing an abrupt sea level rise, frequency of extreme weather events, the spread of disease and loss of lives as a result of global climate change, if something drastic is not done to stem the emission of green house gases (GHG) into the atmosphere. In search of a solution to this, International law has become a handy tool in the hands of governments, policy makers and environmental pundits. Since the 1970s, literally hundreds of international treaties, protocols, conventions, and rules under customary law have been enacted to deal with such problems as global warming, biodiversity loss, and toxic pollution. Proponents of the legal approach to environmental protection believe that if the threats offered by global climate change must be averted, the prominent role of law cannot be downplayed. But skeptics point to ongoing environmental degradation to argue that international law is an ineffective tool for protecting the global environment. This paper reviews the record of international efforts to use law to make our planet more livable. It looks at how law has been used successfully to influence the environmental actions of governments, multinational corporations, and individuals; it also assesses the failures of international law in order to make policy recommendations that could increase the effectiveness of environmental law. It argues that law and legal research in this area have very prominent roles to play in detonating the time bomb called global climate change.