OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE (REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION)

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) asserts that the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement do not exhaustively define State obligations regarding climate change. Instead, States are bound by concurrent duties under customary international law (such as the prevention of transboundary harm), human rights law, and the law of State responsibility. CIEL argues that the cumulative emission of greenhouse gases, primarily from fossil fuels, constitutes an internationally wrongful act. Consequently, responsible States—particularly industrialized nations—must cease their destructive conduct and provide full reparation for material and moral injuries. The submission emphasizes that these obligations extend to future generations, grounded in the principle of intergenerational equity and the precautionary principle, which mandates prioritizing proven emission reductions over speculative technologies.

• The UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement do not exclusively or exhaustively define State obligations regarding climate change; they exist concurrently with customary and treaty-based international law on the environment and human rights.
• State contributions to cumulative greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, combined with a failure to prevent climate change, constitute an internationally wrongful act under the law of State responsibility.
• States that have committed internationally wrongful acts regarding the climate system are legally obligated to cease the wrongful conduct and provide full reparation for resultant material and moral injuries.
• The duty to prevent significant transboundary environmental harm is a principle of customary international law that obliges States to constrain fossil fuel activities within their jurisdiction.
• Anthropogenic GHG emissions are classified as 'pollution of the marine environment' under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), requiring States to prevent, reduce, and control such pollution.
• Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) for fossil fuel activities must include 'Scope 3' downstream emissions, regardless of where the combustion occurs, to be considered adequate.
• The precautionary principle mandates that States prioritize proven emission reduction measures over speculative technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS) or carbon offset credits.
• State obligations regarding climate change extend to future generations, based on the principle of intergenerational equity and the fact that human rights instruments contain no temporal limitations.
• Reparations for climate harm should include restitution, compensation for pecuniary and non-pecuniary harm, and satisfaction, such as public apologies and the disclosure of truth.
• Industrialized nations are disproportionately responsible for cumulative emissions, with some research indicating Global North nations are responsible for 92% of emissions in excess of the 350 ppm planetary boundary.

APA

Chowdhury, J., Lennon, E., Khatri, U., & Reisch, N. (2024). OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE (REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION). Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus-Brief-ICJ-Defining-States-Climate-Obligations.pdf

Chicago

Chowdhury, Joie, Erika Lennon, Upasana Khatri, and Nikki Reisch. OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE (REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION). Center for International Environmental Law, 2024. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus-Brief-ICJ-Defining-States-Climate-Obligations.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Chowdhury |first1=Joie |last2=Lennon |first2=Erika |last3=Khatri |first3=Upasana |last4=Reisch |first4=Nikki |title=OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE (REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION) |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=20 March 2024 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus-Brief-ICJ-Defining-States-Climate-Obligations.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{chowdhury2024obligations, author = {Chowdhury, Joie and Lennon, Erika and Khatri, Upasana and Reisch, Nikki}, title = {{OBLIGATIONS OF STATES IN RESPECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE (REQUEST FOR ADVISORY OPINION)}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2024}, month = mar, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Amicus-Brief-ICJ-Defining-States-Climate-Obligations.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }