The role of environmental law

Author(s):  
Cinnamon P. Carlarne ◽  
Jeffrey M. Bielicki

Analysing and developing environmental law requires a broad analysis of the interplay of many factors. This chapter explores some of the many ways in which environmental law influences the connections between nature and people. The chapter does not explore these connections in minute detail, but instead: (i) examines what is meant by ‘environmental law’; (ii) pushes for a broader understanding of the interactions between law, nature, and human well-being; and (iii) provides two examples of the complex relationship between environmental law and human well-being. It provides an overview of environmental law and its origins. It also presents the motivations for environmental law. Finally, hydraulic fracturing and US national parks are used as examples of environmental law and human well-being contexts. These examples highlight some of complicated ways in which environmental law affects human well-being, and demonstrates the need for an expansive view of what well-being entails.

Author(s):  
Paul Kelly

This chapter examines Jeremy Bentham's political thought. Bentham is both an advocate of laissez-faire and an interventionist, a liberal rationalist and an equivocally liberal thinker prepared to sacrifice the rights of individuals to the well-being of the multitude. His ideas remain contested from all quarters, yet the outline of his actual political thought remains obscure. This chapter defends an interpretation of Bentham as an important liberal thinker with a commitment to the role of government in defending personal security and well-being, but also with a strong scepticism about government as a vehicle for harm as well as good. It first provides a short biography of Bentham before discussing his psychological theory as well as his account of value and duty. It also explores Bentham's views on psychological hedonism, obligations and rules, sovereignty and law, and representative democracy. It concludes with an assessment of Bentham's complex relationship with liberalism.


2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molla Mekonnen Alemu

The natural ecosystems are endangered due to human behavior; the razing of forests is diminishing the world’s oxygen supply and potentially irreplaceable natural resources. Wetlands are being drained, eliminating breeding environments for millions of birds and reproducing grounds for fish; cherished fauna and flora species are being endangered from extinction. Clean water, clean air, access to food sources, buffers of weather events, cultural and spiritual values, and raw materials for consumers, are some of the ecosystem services that ensure the well-being of humanity. Well-managed protected areas are a proven mechanism in the protection and conservation of healthy ecosystems and the services they provide. National Parks are essentially planned to shelter the lasting "wilderness" of a given country and have principally dedicated on the maintenance of extraordinary areas or emblematic species. This paper is aimed at exploring the environmental role of national parks by having an extensive literature review and come up with recommendations which can help the conservation of national parks.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. SG25-SG39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Yang ◽  
Mark D. Zoback

We performed an integrated study of multistage hydraulic fracture stimulation of two parallel horizontal wells in the Bakken Formation in the Williston Basin, North Dakota. There are three distinct parts of this study: development of a geomechanical model for the study area, interpretation of multiarray downhole recordings of microseismic events, and interpretation of hydraulic fracturing data in a geomechanical context. We estimated the current stress state to be characterized by an NF/SS regime, with [Formula: see text] oriented approximately [Formula: see text]. The microseismic events were recorded in six vertical observation wells during hydraulic fracturing of parallel wells X and Z with three unusual aspects. First, rather than occurring in proximity to the stages being pressurized, many of the events occurred along the length of well Y, a parallel well located between wells X and Z that had been in production for approximately [Formula: see text] years at the time X and Z were stimulated. Second, relatively few fracturing stages were associated with an elongated cloud of events trending in the direction of [Formula: see text] as was commonly observed during hydraulic fracturing. Instead, the microseismic events in a few stages appeared to trend approximately [Formula: see text], approximately 30° from the direction of [Formula: see text]. Earthquake focal plane mechanisms confirmed slip on faults with this orientation. Finally, the microseismic events were clustered at two distinct depths: one near the depth of the well being pressurized in the Middle Bakken Formation and the other approximately [Formula: see text] above in the Mission Canyon Formation. We proposed that steeply dipping N75°E striking faults with a combination of normal and strike-slip movement were being stimulated during hydraulic fracturing and provided conduits for pore pressure to be transmitted to the overlaying formations. We tested a simple geomechanical analysis to illustrate how this occurred in the context of the stress field, pore pressure, and depletion in the vicinity of well Y.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 358-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Widawski ◽  
Zdzisław Jary ◽  
Piotr Oleśniewicz ◽  
Piotr Owczarek ◽  
Julita Markiewicz-Patkowska ◽  
...  

AbstractThis article examines the tourist role of protected areas important for their unanimated nature potential. In Poland the highest form of legal protection is a national park. Babiogórski National Parks is one of 23 national parks in Poland. The aim of this article is to present its tourist attraction based on its geotourist potential considered by tourists who visit this park. At the beginning a brief history of protection of Babia Góra is presented. Based on stock-taking sightseeing method an analysis of the most important tourist attractiveness elements (like infrastructure or tourist values) is done. The focus on the values of unanimated nature is made grouping them into four main categories. As the result of research on infrastructure the most important accommodation units were indicated present at the surroundings of this National Park which is vital for its tourist capacity. For the correct functioning of tourist movement at the protected area the supporting infrastructure is important bearing a lot of functions. The function of channeling of the tourist movement as well as the didactic function are the most important for protection and correct use of geotourist values. Among the many elements of the supporting infrastructure the most important ones are tourist and didactic routes (their course and themes are presented). The most important part of the article is the presentation of the participants of the tourist movement opinions on the Babiogórski National Park tourist attractiveness. A survey was conducted and then analysed on 308 respondents in 2011. They were asked to judge both the quality of infrastructure as well as attraction of geotourist values together with their adaptation to reception by the tourist movement. The results analysis served as a base to appraise the state and perspectives for the geotourism development in Babiogórski National Park from the point of view of the receivers of tourist product i.e. the protected area.


2012 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-44
Author(s):  
Vinayak R Naik ◽  
Sanjeevaiah B C

Ecotourism is a visit to the natural reserved areas like national parks, sanctuaries and biosphere reserves for sightseeing as tourism. The visit of reserved areas by the tourists, the entrepreneurs, the government and the host community, the major agencies or stakeholders in ecotourism, has created numerous effects in the field of ecology, socio-cultural, economic which are indefensible lots of time. Sustainability is also a sober concern. The current article inspects sustainability as an association with all its stakeholders and proposes on preserving equilibrium in the correlation which is necessary to achieve sustainability. The part of rule in attaining sustainability is surveyed and found that it helps in reinstating the essential stability in the association with the stakeholders in ecotourism.  Ecotourism in Karnataka is steadily qualified for the consideration of the tourists, the government and the entrepreneurs for clear motive. Karnataka has necessary prospective in ecotourism to cope up with the interests of the tourists, the entrepreneurs and the government but does sustainability study with  concern in the schedule of these organizations. An environmental law is one of the most effectual tools for executing sustainability; it needs plenty of provisions to institute synchronization between the stakeholders and hence the goal of sustainability in ecotourism remains unachievable.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 274
Author(s):  
Henri Järv ◽  
Anton Shkaruba ◽  
Olga Likhacheva ◽  
Viktar Kireyeu ◽  
Raymond Ward ◽  
...  

This study explores how local communities reflect on institutional frameworks and protected area governance in two national parks (NPs) with similar nature values in Estonia and Russia, and aims to understand the role of value systems in these interactions. It is based on 50 in-depth interviews with a broad range of stakeholders, and a desktop analysis of relevant regulation and plans. Interview questions reflect on various aspects of well-being (including fairness of governance solutions), awareness of NPs’ function and restrictions, related value aspects, and covered basic personal data needed to interpret the interviews. The study reconfirms the pivotal role of social justice as a driver of wellbeing. In particular, it articulates the significance of value systems playing the role of filters between governance inputs and specific management activities of communities. It underlines the vulnerability of such systems at a community level, most of all to the impacts related to various instances of “centralization”. They are manifested through the choice of restrictive measures and top-down arrangements at the expense of transparency and inclusiveness (in Russia), as well as through the removal of governance autonomy from NPs and transferring monitoring and enforcement functions to local communities without clear mandates or sufficient capacity (in Estonia).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald K. Anton

International custom “as evidence of a general practice accepted as law”, is considered one of the two main sources of international law as it primarily derives from the conduct of sovereign States, but is also closely connected with the role of the international judge when identifying the applicable customary rule, a function it shares with the bodies in charge of its codification (and progressive development), starting with the International Law Commission. Though mainly considered to be general international law, international custom has a complex relationship with many specific fields of law and specific regions of the world. The editor provides comprehensive research published in the last seven decades, invaluable to everyone interested in the field of customary international law.


Author(s):  
Kenneth A. Reinert

This chapter introduces the concept of human security and relates the concept to the basic goods approach. It considers the widespread nature of human security deprivation and the consequent negative impacts for well-being and safety. The chapter examines the right to human security and the central role of this right within the United Nations system of human rights. It considers the related concepts of the right to protect and humanitarian space, the many causes of human insecurity, the contribution of the drug and arms trade to human insecurity, and the various kinds of costs and impacts of human insecurity. It concludes with a brief consideration of various means to better provide human security services.


2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Emmy L Henley

The journey of students in a Collegiate Recovery Program (CRP) begins with early recovery and continues towards a well-developed mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical state. Much emphasis is placed on mental, emotional, and spiritual healing through traditional recovery programs. Though all of these aspects are vital to flourishing in recovery, nourishing the physical state is often overlooked. The “missing link” within CRPs, the role of nutrition, can significantly impact physical well-being in recovery and a student’s reconnection with their body. Delivering information to CRP staff and students on the many aspects impacted from nutritional deficiencies and imbalances (neurobiological, gastrointestinal, emotional, mental), particularly in early recovery, will provide a means to evaluate  inclusion of nutritional and physical health emphasis at their CRP.  Appropriate implementation, not only knowledge, of resources to support this “missing link” is also crucial  in a student’s journey to flourishing in recovery.


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