Sovereignty in the Era of Fragmentation – EU Trade Agreements and the Notion of Statehood in International Law

In this article, we explore the theme of sovereignty in the context of fragmented international law. We observe that the sovereignty of States may become relativized, not only by the political power of other States, but by its exposure to multiple, functionally separate fields of law. We analyze this theme by asking whether trade agreements as instruments of economic law offer a venue for discussing the sovereignty of sub-statal entities that lack standing on the more traditional international forums. Our analysis focuses first on a recent decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union, which concerned the status of Western Sahara in the framework of the EU-Morocco trade agreement. We then consider the implications of that case, if any, on the situation in the region of Abkhazia within Georgia in the context of the EU-Georgia Association Agreement. We show how trade agreements in some cases may (EU-Morocco), and in other cases may not (EU-Georgia), affect the integrity of States in a novel way, depending on the intricacies of the facts and the strictures of the terms of the applicable Agreement. Reflecting the fragmentation of law, trade agreements thus have the potential to grant an avenue for sub-statal entities to establish standing before a regional court (in our case, the Court of Justice of the EU), or an international tribunal. That, in turn, may allow these entities to reinforce their claims for self-determination under international law. Beyond the possible theoretical implications on the (relativity of) sovereignty, the findings seem worth considering carefully in the context of concluding and formulating regional and international agreements in different fields of law

On a Common Road Towards Sustainable Biofuels? EU and U.S. Approaches to Regulating Biofuels

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Will Bio-Jet Fly? Towards a Carbon Neutral Aviation Sector. IES Policy Brief Issue 2016/19 • October 2016

Aviation has transformed society over the past five decades, effectively shrinking the planet and bringing socio-economic benefits to an increasing number of people. Its unremitting growth does, however, come at a price. Direct emissions from civil aviation account for approximately 2% of global GHG emissions and for 3% of EU emissions. They amount to only a third of those in the road transport sector, but display a high per-passenger intensity and are increasing rapidly along with the relentless rise in demand for air transport. Global projected annual growth rates of 5% up to 2030 could lead to a more than six-fold increase in emissions by 2050 when compared to 1990 levels, which makes aviation the fastest growing source of greenhouse gases in the world. Industry stakeholders are becoming aware of their need to adopt measures to reduce the sector’s carbon footprint, if one is to end up anywhere near the ambitious 1.5°C objective set out at COP21

INFLUENCE OF GLUTARALDEHYDE AND/OR OSMIUM TETROXIDE ON CELL VOLUME, ION CONTENT, MECHANICAL STABILITY, AND MEMBRANE PERMEABILITY OF EHRLICH ASCITES TUMOR CELLS

Effects of fixation with glutaraldehyde (GA), glutaraldehyde-osmium tetroxide (GA-OsO4), and osmium tetroxide (OsO4) on ion and ATP content, cell volume, vital dye staining, and stability to mechanical and thermal stress were studied in Ehrlich ascites tumor cells (EATC). Among variables investigated were fixation time, fixative concentration, temperature, osmolality of the fixative agent and buffer, total osmolality of the fixative solution, osmolality of the postfixation buffer, and time of postfixation treatment in buffer (Sutherland, R. M., et al. 1967. J. Cell Physiol. 69:185.). Rapid loss of potassium, exchangeable magnesium, and ATP, and increase of vital dye uptake and electrical conductivity occurred with all fixatives studied. These changes were virtually immediate with GA-OsO4 or OsO4 but slower with GA (in the latter case they were dependent on fixative temperature and concentration) (Foot, N. C. 1950. In McClung's Handbook of Microscopical Technique. 3rd edition. 564.). Total fixative osmolality had a marked effect on cell volume with OsO4 but little or no effect with GA or GA-OsO4. Osmolality of the buffer had a marked effect on cell volume with OsO4, whereas with GA or GA-OsO4 it was only significant at very hypotonic buffer osmolalities. Concentration of GA had no effect on cell volume. Osmolality of the postfixation buffer had little effect on cell volume, and duration of fixation or postfixation treatment had no effect with all fixatives. Freezing and thawing or centrifugal stress (up to 100,000 g) had little or no effect on cell volume after all fixatives studied. Mechanical stress obtained by sonication showed that OsO4 alone produced poor stabilization and that GA fixation alone produced the greatest stabilization. The results indicate that rapid membrane permeability changes of EATC follow fixative action. The results are consistent with known greater stabilizing effects of GA on model protein systems since cells were also rendered relatively stable to osmotic stress during fixation, an effect not noted with OsO4. After fixation with GA and/or OsO4 cells were stable to osmotic, thermal, or mechanical stress; this is inconsistent with several earlier reports that GA-fixed cells retain their osmotic properties

The United Kingdom and the (Digital) Single Market. Issue 2016/9• April 2016

By bundling the manifold policy expertise of the researchers of the Institute for European Studies (IES), this paper forms part of a series of analyses investigating the potential implications of a ‘Brexit’ scenario for different EU policies. All papers ask the same three questions: 1) What is the state of the EU policy in focus? 2) What is the UK’s role/interest in this policy field? 3) What are the potential implications of a ‘Brexit’ scenario at the policy-level? After Claire Dupont and Florian Trauner introduce the project, Richard Lewis sets the historical and cultural context and explains how the UK and the EU have come to such a low-point in their relations. Next, five policy fields are analysed: justice and home affairs; free movement policies; EU external representation; the (digital) single market; and environmental policy

Exponeringsrisker i samband med inhalationsbehandling av häst

Bronchiolitis is a common performance decreasing disease in horses (Bracher et al, 1991¸Dixon et al, 1995) Its medical treatment includes inhalation therapy with corticosteroids and b2-adrenoceptorer stimulators. Use of both these medicines is prohibited for sport horses and athletes. Because the facemasks used for inhalation therapy are not airtight, there is a risk for leakage of these medicines. We wanted to see if cross exposure of nearby horses can result during normal recommended treatment of a horse, and assess if this could result in doping positive urine sample from the person treating the horse and from horses in the same airspace. We did a pilot study with four healthy horses. The experiment was divided into four parts. Two of them were done with corticosteroids and two with b2- adrenoceptor stimulators. Both medicines were tested separately with the two different metered dosed inhalers that are most commonly used in Sweden. In each experiment one of the horses was treated while standing in the stable with the three other horses, following which urine samples were collected from all four horses as well as from the person administering the treatment. Due to economic constraints only samples from the b2-adrenoceptor stimulator experiments were analysed. Following inhalation treatment of a horse using either inhalation mask, detectable levels of b2-adrenoceptor stimulator were measurable on some occasions in the urine of some of the untreated horses and in the person administering the drug. The threshold for doping value of b2-adrenoceptor stimulator in humans was not exceeded in this study. For horses there is a specific doping concentration value for corticosteroids but none for b2-adrenoceptors. This means that if it is possible to detect b2-adrenoceptors in a urine sample, no matter at which concentration, it would be considered doping positive. The results of this study suggest that there is leakage from the inhalation masks sufficient to expose both the person treating the horse, and neighbouring, untreated horses to inhaled medications

Sustain, Filip Sedefov, Ólöf Söebech and Eleanor Mateo able aviation fuels: common ground for a take-off. IES Policy Brief Issue 2017/05 • November 2017

Aviation biofuels remain a controversial topic. An analysis of stakeholder views reveals, however, that there is considerable common ground on the two central issues in short to medium term: sustainability and commercialisation. Stakeholders generally agree that sustainability must be based on objective, transparent and clearly defined criteria that demonstrate the environmental advantages of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) over fossil fuels. The measurement of impacts should use verified life-cycle analyses (LCA) throughout the supply chain. Sustainability standards should be strict, yet they should not be so rigid as to prevent the commercialisation of SAF, and they need to be tightened as the market evolves. For the commercialisation of SAF, the stakeholders reckon that the infrastructure and marketing models already exist: the remaining hurdle is the price gap between conventional fossil fuels and SAF. Active policies that include commercial and regulatory incentives are required to make sustainable aviation fuels competitive, and for the market to take off