Ocean Acidification and the UNFCCC: Finding Legal Clarity in the Twilight Zone
Ocean acidification—the rise in ocean acidity due primarily to the absorption of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere—is often thought of as a consequence of climate change; however, it is a separate, albeit very closely related, problem. Despite their common driver, the processes and impacts of...
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UW Law Digital Commons
2016
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| Online Access: | https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wjelp/vol6/iss2/13 https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1065&context=wjelp |
| Summary: | Ocean acidification—the rise in ocean acidity due primarily to the absorption of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere—is often thought of as a consequence of climate change; however, it is a separate, albeit very closely related, problem. Despite their common driver, the processes and impacts of ocean acidification and climate change are distinct and it should not be assumed that policies intended to alleviate climate change will simultaneously benefit the oceans. Indeed, some proposed climate change policy interventions, such as geoengineering schemes or the reduction of non-CO2 greenhouse gases, either do nothing to alleviate increasing ocean acidification or have the potential to exacerbate it. Ultimately, climate change and ocean acidification are two manifestations of the one problem, anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions, and it is only with its reduction that the most serious impacts of both phenomena can be avoided. Therefore, any efforts to regulate these emissions should consider both climate change and ocean acidification. However, such attempts raise questions about the ability to incorporate ocean acidification into existing environmental treaties due to limitations in their mandates. This is particularly pertinent to the workings of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, also referred to as the Convention), as it is widely recognized as the preeminent regime tasked with the stabilization of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide. Applying the basic principles of treaty interpretation, as per the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, I contend that ocean acidification can be included in the workings of the UNFCCC and that it is justifiable within the scope of the treaty’s mandate to do so. While it may be pragmatic for the UNFCCC to consider ocean acidification in its efforts to reduce carbon dioxide, this has, to date, not occurred in any meaningful way. The only mention of the phenomena in any of the outcome documents of the Conference of ... |
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