Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

The Role of the ECHR in Climate Change - Difficulties and Solutions in Implementing an Obligation to Combat Climate Change

Örvall, Cesar LU (2023) JURM02 20232
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
This thesis examines the ECHR with the aim of exploring the possible existence of positive substantive obligations connected to climate change and pertaining to the right to life and right to health as expressed in article 2 and 8 of the Convention. It departs by compiling how a positive substantive obligation is found in the ECHR system. It concludes that there must be a threat of harm to the right of life or health of a specific individual or a group of people. Moreover, three criteria must be answered affirmatively. Firstly, the state must have had or ought to have had knowledge about the threat. Secondly, the omission to act or the inadequate action of the state in order to stop the threat must somehow pertain to the harm, showing... (More)
This thesis examines the ECHR with the aim of exploring the possible existence of positive substantive obligations connected to climate change and pertaining to the right to life and right to health as expressed in article 2 and 8 of the Convention. It departs by compiling how a positive substantive obligation is found in the ECHR system. It concludes that there must be a threat of harm to the right of life or health of a specific individual or a group of people. Moreover, three criteria must be answered affirmatively. Firstly, the state must have had or ought to have had knowledge about the threat. Secondly, the omission to act or the inadequate action of the state in order to stop the threat must somehow pertain to the harm, showing causation. Thirdly, holding the state responsible must be reasonable, and the obligation levied against it cannot impose an unreasonable or disproportionate burden. It is further found that these criteria intertwine and mutually affect each other in several places.

In the next chapter the thesis moves on to establish and summarize the best available science concerning climate change and how Europe will be affected by these changes. It is found that the greatest threats to the right of life and health will be posed by the rising temperature itself and its direct effects, such as heatwaves and rising sea levels, as well as the increased precipitation and its compound effects, such as floods and landslides. These effects are concluded to already constitute a threat to the enjoyment of the right to life and health, with continued and increased global warming only resulting in worsening the impacts of the threats.

The text finishes by tackling the main question of the thesis, mainly proposing that there two possible substantive positive obligations could exist. Described in abstract they would both consist of an obligation to create regulatory frameworks to safeguard the rights laid down in the Convention. The first proposed obligation is one requiring adaptation. As climate change causes threats to appear this obligation would require states to implement adaptations to protect the people under their jurisdiction from these threats. The second proposed obligation is an inward-looking obligation of cooperation requiring mitigation in connection to a states nationally determined contributions in the Paris Agreement. The criterium of state knowledge is deemed as fulfilled due to the objective available science and the signing of both the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC. Problems of implementation are however found when the investigation moves on to causation and reasonableness. It could be hard to connect the omissions of states to limit global warming to the harm experienced by people and depending on the deliberations of the Court the proposed obligations could be seen as unreasonable. It is suggested that some of the found problems could be solved by leaning heavily on the Paris Agreement and the scientific knowledge, allowing them to inform the content of the obligations. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
I uppsatsen granskas Europakonventionen i syfte att undersöka om det kan
finnas positiva materiella skyldigheter kopplade till klimatförändringar samt
rätten till liv och hälsa uttryckta i artikel 2 och 8 i konventionen. Den börjar
med att sammanställa hur en positiv materiell skyldighet kopplad till Europakonventionen uppkommer. Slutsatsen är att det krävs ett hot om kränkning av
rätten till liv eller hälsa riktad mot en viss individ eller en grupp av människor.
Dessutom måste tre kriterier besvaras jakande. För det första måste staten ha
haft eller borde ha haft kännedom om hotet. För det andra måste underlåtenheten att agera eller statens otillräckliga agerande för att stoppa hotet på något
sätt hänföra sig till skadan och därmed... (More)
I uppsatsen granskas Europakonventionen i syfte att undersöka om det kan
finnas positiva materiella skyldigheter kopplade till klimatförändringar samt
rätten till liv och hälsa uttryckta i artikel 2 och 8 i konventionen. Den börjar
med att sammanställa hur en positiv materiell skyldighet kopplad till Europakonventionen uppkommer. Slutsatsen är att det krävs ett hot om kränkning av
rätten till liv eller hälsa riktad mot en viss individ eller en grupp av människor.
Dessutom måste tre kriterier besvaras jakande. För det första måste staten ha
haft eller borde ha haft kännedom om hotet. För det andra måste underlåtenheten att agera eller statens otillräckliga agerande för att stoppa hotet på något
sätt hänföra sig till skadan och därmed visa ett orsakssamband. För det tredje
måste det vara rimligt att hålla staten ansvarig, och den skyldighet som åläggs
den får inte medföra en orimlig eller oproportionerlig börda. Det framkommer
vidare att dessa kriterier flätas samman och ömsesidigt påverkar varandra på
flera ställen.

I nästa kapitel går uppsatsen vidare till att etablera och sammanfatta den bästa
tillgängliga vetenskapen om klimatförändringar och hur Europa kommer att
påverkas av dessa förändringar. Det har visat sig att de största hoten mot rätten till liv och hälsa kommer att utgöras av de stigande temperaturen och dess
följdeffekter, såsom värmeböljor och stigande havsnivåer, samt den ökade
nederbörden och dess följdeffekter, såsom översvämningar och jordskred.
Slutsatsen är att dessa effekter redan utgör ett hot mot rätten till liv och hälsa
och att den fortsatta och ökade globala uppvärmningen endast leder till att
effekterna av hoten förvärras.

Avslutningsvis hanteras uppsatsens huvudfråga. Det föreslås i huvudsak att
det skulle kunna finnas två möjliga materiella positiva skyldigheter. Abstrakt
beskrivet skulle de båda bestå av en skyldighet att skapa regelverk för att
skydda de rättigheter som fastställs i konventionen. Den första föreslagna
skyldigheten kräver anpassning. Då klimatförändringarna leder till att hot
uppstår skulle skyldigheten kräva att staterna genomför anpassningar för att
skydda de människor som står under deras jurisdiktion. Den andra föreslagna
skyldigheten är en inåtvänd samarbetsskyldighet som kräver motverkan av
grunderna till klimatförändringarna kopplad till en stats nationellt fastställda
klimatplaner i Parisavtalet. Kriteriet för kännedom anses vara uppfyllt på
grund av den tillgängliga vetenskapen och undertecknandet av både Parisavtalet samt UNFCCC. Problem med implementeringen framkommer dock när
utredningen går vidare till orsakssamband och rimlighet. Det kan vara svårt
att koppla staternas underlåtenhet att begränsa den globala uppvärmningen
till den skada som människor upplever, och beroende på domstolens överläggningar kan de föreslagna skyldigheterna ses som orimliga. Det förordas
att några av de funna problemen skulle kunna lösas genom att luta sig tungt
mot Parisavtalet och den tillgängliga vetenskapen, vilket gör det möjligt för
dem att utfylla skyldigheternas innehåll. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Örvall, Cesar LU
supervisor
organization
course
JURM02 20232
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
Public international law, Human Rights Law, ECHR, European Convention on Human Rights, Climate Change, Paris Agreement, ECtHR, European Court of Human Rights, Global Warming
language
English
id
9143085
date added to LUP
2024-01-19 12:08:06
date last changed
2024-01-19 12:08:06
@misc{9143085,
  abstract     = {{This thesis examines the ECHR with the aim of exploring the possible existence of positive substantive obligations connected to climate change and pertaining to the right to life and right to health as expressed in article 2 and 8 of the Convention. It departs by compiling how a positive substantive obligation is found in the ECHR system. It concludes that there must be a threat of harm to the right of life or health of a specific individual or a group of people. Moreover, three criteria must be answered affirmatively. Firstly, the state must have had or ought to have had knowledge about the threat. Secondly, the omission to act or the inadequate action of the state in order to stop the threat must somehow pertain to the harm, showing causation. Thirdly, holding the state responsible must be reasonable, and the obligation levied against it cannot impose an unreasonable or disproportionate burden. It is further found that these criteria intertwine and mutually affect each other in several places.

In the next chapter the thesis moves on to establish and summarize the best available science concerning climate change and how Europe will be affected by these changes. It is found that the greatest threats to the right of life and health will be posed by the rising temperature itself and its direct effects, such as heatwaves and rising sea levels, as well as the increased precipitation and its compound effects, such as floods and landslides. These effects are concluded to already constitute a threat to the enjoyment of the right to life and health, with continued and increased global warming only resulting in worsening the impacts of the threats.

The text finishes by tackling the main question of the thesis, mainly proposing that there two possible substantive positive obligations could exist. Described in abstract they would both consist of an obligation to create regulatory frameworks to safeguard the rights laid down in the Convention. The first proposed obligation is one requiring adaptation. As climate change causes threats to appear this obligation would require states to implement adaptations to protect the people under their jurisdiction from these threats. The second proposed obligation is an inward-looking obligation of cooperation requiring mitigation in connection to a states nationally determined contributions in the Paris Agreement. The criterium of state knowledge is deemed as fulfilled due to the objective available science and the signing of both the Paris Agreement and the UNFCCC. Problems of implementation are however found when the investigation moves on to causation and reasonableness. It could be hard to connect the omissions of states to limit global warming to the harm experienced by people and depending on the deliberations of the Court the proposed obligations could be seen as unreasonable. It is suggested that some of the found problems could be solved by leaning heavily on the Paris Agreement and the scientific knowledge, allowing them to inform the content of the obligations.}},
  author       = {{Örvall, Cesar}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{The Role of the ECHR in Climate Change - Difficulties and Solutions in Implementing an Obligation to Combat Climate Change}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}