Customary Norms, General Principles of International Environmental Law, and Assisted Migration as a Tool for Biodiversity Adaptation to Climate Change

• Published in: Jus Cogens Vol. 4; no. 2; pp. 99 - 129
• Main Author: Lavrik, Maksim
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.07.2022
• Subjects: International Organizations; Law; Law and Criminolgy; Legal History; Original; Original Article; Philosophy of Law; Political Theory; Sources and Subjects of International Law; Theories of Law; Assisted colonization; Customary norms; Climate change adaptation law; Assisted migration; General principles of international environmental law; Biodiversity law
• ISSN: 2524-3977; 2524-3985
• DOI: 10.1007/s42439-022-00055-8

Assisted migration (AM) is a translocation of the representatives of species to areas outside their natural habitats as a response to climate change. This article seeks to identify how customary norms and general principles of international environmental law could guide the development of regulation of AM maximizing the benefits of using AM and minimizing AM-related risks . Among the customary norms and principles of international environmental law discussed in the article and relevant to the regulation of AM are the permanent sovereignty over natural resources, the principle of cooperation, the no-harm rule, the precautionary principle, the principles of prevention, due diligence, and obligation to conduct environmental impact assessment (EIA), the principles of integration and intergenerational equity, common but differentiated responsibilities, and the polluter pays principle, the principles of non-regression, progression, resilience, in dubio pro natura , the principle of ecological proportionality, and the principle of access to information, public participation, and access to justice in environmental matters (principle of good governance, environmental democracy).