A Bridge Too Far? Assessing the Prospects for International Environmental Law to Resolve the South China Sea Disputes

Doctrinal approaches to the South China Sea island and maritime jurisdiction disputes have traditionally invoked the international law on territorial sovereignty acquisition and the law of the sea for their resolution. However, neither of these two fields of international law and their established institutions has succeeded in settling these disputes. This paves the way for consideration of other, related but less historically and politically significant international legal developments establishing constraints against the activities undertaken on and around many of the South China Sea insular formations. In this paper, the potential for international environmental law to resolve the South China Sea disputes will be examined. Specifically, international environmental law governing ‘shared’ water bodies and their application in relevant international case law will be assessed. These obligations will be mapped onto the South China Sea disputes, with a view to providing the means for co-operation towards the resolution of these disputes.</jats:p

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank: bringing 'Asian values' to global economic governance?

This paper examines the recent establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) through the prism of the 'Asian values' debate. It maps the key attributes of these 'Asian values' first, to the established institutional governance structures of the AIIB, and second, to its proposed decision-making procedures; specifically, in relation to the criteria and process for evaluating, assessing, and monitoring the economic, social and environmental sustainability of infrastructure projects that this new Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) will be supporting. The object of this exercise is to postulate whether an 'Asian values' approach to international development finance can be proposed as a viable alternative to currently Western-dominated institutions of global economic governance and ultimately, the Anglo-American form of capitalism that still underpins the global economy. The twin roles of China within the AIIB, first as the financial catalyst for AIIB investment in regional infrastructure projects, and second, as a potential regional hegemon through its dominance of the AIIB governance structure, will be canvassed. The essay concludes by proposing an ‘Asian values’ approach to global economic governance as the foundation of a new research agenda which can be used to assess the future operations of this Bank and other new MDBs

Public Accountability for Private International Financing of Natural Resource Development Projects: The UN Rule of Law Initiative and the Equator Principles

A striking feature of public international financing of natural resource development projects in developing economies is the introduction of public accountability mechanisms to ensure that these projects comply with social and environmental principles and standards. For example, natural resource development projects funded through the World Bank group are subject to the Inspection Panel mechanism in relation to complaints about the negative social and environmental impacts of such projects. As the public international financing of such projects is increasingly giving way to private international finance, this paper will examine whether similar accountability mechanisms have been developed for this type of private international financing for such projects. Within this context, the third iteration of the Equator Principles has recently been adopted by a growing number of private international financing institutions in the ‘project finance’ field, namely, the Equator Principles Financial Institutions (EPFIs). By comparing the accountability mechanisms established by public and private international finance institutions against objectively set criteria for such mechanisms, based on the UN’s international ‘rule of law’ project, this paper will assess whether there has been adequate replication of public accountability standards in the movement from public to private international financing of natural resource projects, especially within developing economies

Prospects for transitional environmental justice in the socio-economic reconstruction of Kosovo

Environmental justice is arguably a neglected aspect in the pursuit of transitional justice within post-conflict societies. The international and European institutional and legal frameworks that are currently applicable within Kosovo present a suitable backdrop against which to examine the different legal pathways towards providing for environmental justice within this transitional society. The implications of achieving environmental justice within the overall context of transitional justice in a fledgling state such as Kosovo will then be explored. In particular, the potential for transitional environmental justice to reconcile (if not resolve) deeper, more intrinsic ethnic and social divisions within Kosovo, as well as a means to reduce the negative environmental impacts of an overtly economic development agenda, is considered. A number of examples highlighting the potential of the international, European and domestic legal frameworks for achieving environmental justice within Kosovo will be showcased as a possible exemplar model for transitional societies in general

The Interaction between an Agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction and the Law of the Sea

Part I will focus on specific issues identified in the revised draft text that need to be addressed to ensure both the clarity and coherence of the final agreement, as well as the proper implementation of the future Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, when it enters into force. In doing so, this contribution juxtaposes selected negotiating text provisions against, inter alia, the relevant ‘international best practice’ on these issues. The purported ‘international best practice’ on these topics is in turn drawn from a combination of relevant law of the sea, international environmental law, as well as international case law jurisprudence elaborating on the procedural and substantive aspects, and especially the thresholds, of these rights and obligations. In PART II: FOCUS ON ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND MARINE PROTECTED AREAS The set of legal issues arising from the application of the EIA principle to all types of resource collection activities within the ABNJ can be encapsulated into three related aspects, namely, the legal status of this principle under international law generally; the legal definition of what constitutes EIA; and the legal threshold at which EIA becomes a specific international obligation in the State sponsoring (or otherwise authorizing and/or supporting) the proposed activities concerned. This section first confirms the legal status of the international obligation to conduct EIA for activities undertaken in ABNJ as an obligation of customary international law. In doing so, it will also establish this obligation as a corollary to the due diligence principle that is applicable under international law as an obligation of performance (or conduct), the failure of which would in turn invite consideration of possible State responsibility (and liability) for any harm arising from the inadequate performance of any EIA undertaken. The principle of due diligence as an abiding notion in public international law now has a particular resonance within the relentless rise in the importance of international environmental law. Where there is an international obligation of performance (or conduct), then due diligence is arguably the test that international law applies to gauge/measure whether such performance as required by the obligation has indeed been fulfilled

The South China Sea Environment: The Need for Formalised Institutional Interaction between Science, Policy and Law

This essay is a survey of the conjunction and interaction between the scientific, policy and legal disciplines devoted to protection of the South China Sea’s environment. It will first assess the state of scientific research on this water body, and then explore the connexions between the results of this scientific research with the policy initiatives and legal instruments designed to address the specific pollution issues and general degradation of this semi-enclosed sea. The present study is therefore predicated on the assumption that there is a continuing need for formalised institutional cooperation on the marine scientific research efforts into this body of water as a necessary pre-requisite, inter alia, to establish the environmental baseline standards for measuring land-based sources of pollution into the South China Sea from its littoral States, as well as other pollution sources such as international shipping through this busy waterway between several of the biggest economies in the world. Such formalised institutional co-operation over marine scientific research can then form the basis for targeted policy decisions and specific legal measures designed to address the environmental threats uncovered by the concerted and collated marine scientific research on the South China Sea

Transboundary Fisheries Management

Malaysia’s unique geographical position, straddling across several seas within the Indian and Pacific Oceans, allows her to play an important role within the set of regional, sub-regional and bilateral arrangements for transboundary fisheries management in the Indo-Pacific theatre. This article first charts and then examines Malaysia’s participation within these fisheries management initiatives, beginning from the overarching international legal frameworks of unclos and the Fish Stocks Agreement, through the formal and informal regional and sub-regional fisheries management organizations, and finally, to bilateral arrangements for fisheries co-operation. Along the way, Malaysia’s policy, legal and institutional capacity, as well as her readiness to perform the role(s) required of her, in relation to regional, sub-regional, and bilateral fisheries management issues, are critically assessed

Shared Responsibility or Institutional Accountability? Continuing Conceptual and Enforcement Issues for Grievance Mechanisms of Public and Private International Finance Institutions

This chapter explores the legal issues associated with attempts to exert accountability for public and private ifi s for violations of international law norms in respect of major infrastructure projects that they have either funded or otherwise assisted. Within this context, this chapter focuses on accountability mechanisms as one of the three basic types of international institutional mechanisms according to a typology described by Stewart.1 Section 2 will first engage with the conceptual questions surrounding accountability and responsibility on the part of these non- State actors for violations of international norms, assessing the viability of ‘shared responsibility’ of international/ transnational non- State actors for these violations. Specifically, this discussion will juxtapose conceptual arguments in favour of the ‘shared responsibility’ of these institutions for their role in any breaches of international law against the practical development of institutional mechanisms for asserting accountability over public and private ifi s for such violations. In Section 3, I will assess different types of institutional grievance mechanisms established to exert accountability on the part of these international finance institutions for their compliance with international obligations. These attempts to ensure the institutional accountability of public and private international finance institutions will be examined as a normative alternative to the ‘shared responsibility’ paradigm examined in Section 2. The effectiveness ofthese grievance mechanisms will be examined in two case studies, highlighting the continuing deficiencies of these mechanisms when addressing violations of international law, especially in the human rights and environmentalfields. These deficiencies are both conceptual as well as practical in nature. They are laid bare by the increasing role played by international organizations (IOs) generally and international finance institutions specifically in major infrastructure development projects. These two case studies involve, respectively, the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (cao) office of the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (ifc),2 and the ‘Equator Principles’.3 These case studies will first assess the relationship between the implementation by these non- State actors of relevant international obligations for social resilience and environmental protection and the institutional mechanisms established to hold these non- State actors accountable for any deficiencies in the implementation of these international obligations. These case studies will then highlight continuing practical enforcement issues for these accountability mechanisms. The chapter concludes by addressing continuing issues of enforcement of international social and environmental norms that the two case studies highlight within the ‘institutional accountability’ alternative, as opposed to the ‘shared responsibility’ of these institutions. In doing so, this chapter will highlight the continuing structural issues inherent to public international law when it comes to addressing violations of international obligations caused by the increasing roles played by io s generally, and international finance institutions specifically

Microcystic cyanobacteria extract induces cytoskeletal disruption and intracellular glutathione alteration in hepatocytes.

Microcystins are a group of highly liver-specific toxins, although their exact mechanisms of action remain unclear. We examined the effects of microcystic cyanobacteria extract (MCE) collected from a contaminated water source on the organization of cellular microtubules (MTs) and microfilaments (MFs) in hepatocytes. We also investigated the effects on lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage and intracellular glutathione (GSH). Primary cultured rat hepatocytes exposed to MCE (equivalent to 125 microg/mL lyophilized algae cells) showed a characteristic disruption of MTs and MFs in a time-dependent manner. Under these conditions, MCE caused aggregation of MTs and MFs and a severe loss of MTs in some cells. Moreover, MCE-induced cytoskeletal alterations preceded the LDH leakage. On the other hand, the treatment of cells with MCE led to a dose-dependent increase of intracellular GSH. However, time-course study showed a biphasic change of intracellular GSH levels with a significant increase in the initial stage followed by a decrease after prolonged treatment. Furthermore, pretreatment with N-acetylcystein (NAC), a GSH precursor, significantly enhanced the intracellular GSH level and decreased the MCE-induced cytotoxicity as well as cytoskeleton changes. In contrast, buthionine-(S, R)-sulfoximine, a specific GSH synthesis inhibitor, increased the cell susceptibility to MCE-induced cytotoxicity by depleting the intracellular GSH level. These findings suggest that intracellular GSH plays an important role in MCE-induced cytotoxicity and cytoskeleton changes in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. Increasing intracellular GSH levels protect cells from MCE-induced cytotoxicity and cytoskeleton changes

Unique morphological characteristics of mitochondrial subtypes in the heart: the effect of ischemia and ischemic preconditioning.

RATIONALE: Three subsets of mitochondria have been described in adult cardiomyocytes - intermyofibrillar (IMF), subsarcolemmal (SSM), and perinuclear (PN). They have been shown to differ in physiology, but whether they also vary in morphological characteristics is unknown. Ischemic preconditioning (IPC) is known to prevent mitochondrial dysfunction induced by acute myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI), but whether IPC can also modulate mitochondrial morphology is not known. AIMS: Morphological characteristics of three different subsets of adult cardiac mitochondria along with the effect of ischemia and IPC on mitochondrial morphology will be investigated. METHODS: Mouse hearts were subjected to the following treatments (N=6 for each group): stabilization only, IPC (3x5 min cycles of global ischemia and reperfusion), ischemia only (20 min global ischemia); and IPC and ischemia. Hearts were then processed for electron microscopy and mitochondrial morphology was assessed subsequently. RESULTS: In adult cardiomyocytes, IMF mitochondria were found to be more elongated and less spherical than PN and SSM mitochondria. PN mitochondria were smaller in size when compared to the other two subsets. SSM mitochondria had similar area to IMF mitochondria but their sphericity measures were similar to PN mitochondria. Ischemia was shown to increase the sphericity parameters of all 3 subsets of mitochondria; reduce the length of IMF mitochondria, and increase the size of PN mitochondria. IPC had no effect on mitochondrial morphology either at baseline or after ischemia. CONCLUSION: The three subsets of mitochondria in the adult heart are morphologically different. IPC does not appear to modulate mitochondrial morphology in adult cardiomyocytes