David Krohn

Dissolving Differences: Conclusion

The governance of water is a cross cutting issue that impacts on every human entity from the poorest of the poor to the most powerful of governments to the richest  of corporations. In the same way every human entity has the responsibility to ensure that every last drop is used as efficiently and sustainably as possible. It should be the objective of every person who has an ounce of influence to strive for cooperation until resources can be apportioned equitably and reasonably amongst all earth’s inhabitants.

This informative graphic from our friends over at good magazine shows how easy it is to save water and the extent to which efficient water use can be reduced to an individual level. The huge amount of virtual water we consume, often  without consideration, has a huge impact on the availability and quality of water resources and the importance of using available technology to minimise our impact on the environment is clear for all to see. It is really interesting to see that a pound of beef takes 70 minutes of showering to produce and it is increasingly important that our decisions contribute to the welfare of all organisms and the environment.

As we have learnt from our study thus far, weaving the structure of international water law around pillars of moral strength such as integrity, unity, equity and reason provides the grounds for unprecedented legitimacy. The importance of legitimacy goes far beyond its utility and it is crucial that the IEL regime and international law more generally, build up a base of legitimacy to enhance it’s influence on the international community.

Any legal system based on integrity must find its roots in pragmatic reality as well as idealistic possibility. Water law has failed to properly balance the ever-growing nature of water demand with the finite resources at our disposal. To achieve these ends, it is important to establish a rules-based regime in order to exert jurisdiction over water conflicts and ERU is central to this. By establishing primary principles, such as those seen in the WTO, the IWL self contained regime can compete against more established regimes and seek primacy for its ends. Water is an area where business withdraws a large amount of greatly undervalued environmental services and so is an ideal starting point for regulating trade within environmental law.

Elevating ERU to jus cogens status would bring it under the ambit of UNSC activity and provide a way for the UN to exert greater force in environmental affairs and for other environmental bodies to gain parity with the WTO. By enforcing environmental norms, the UN can succeed in holding trade bodies and corporations accountable for actions that damage the natural environment and have a negative impact the poor’s ability to withdraw valuable environmental services. Few could deny that meeting basic needs of people must gain priority over almost all other concerns and ERU is integral to meeting these ends and promoting primacy. Thus ERU should carry at least as much importance as WTO regimes.

As Brierly noted, the legitimacy in international law is dependent on annexing some areas of domestic law, in line with current trends. It is possible that water law, and IEL more generally, provide a means of allowing international law to penetrate the domestic setting. As much of the damage caused to the natural environment happens on a national level, it is increasingly imperative that multilateral bodies utilize means to exert influence within these jurisdictions. Sustainability is a concept vital to fulfilling this end and, when coupled with equity and reason, we have a principle with the potential to compete with other regimes and gain parity with trade law.

It is important that we allow environmental norms to become factors in international public policy and limitations on organizations that act beyond the jurisdiction of the nation state. Being such an entity, it is crucial that the UN finds a means to enhance its legitimacy and it seems that the global water crisis provides just such an opportunity. Through providing basic needs and ensuring peaceful interactions over water the UN can go a long way towards improving the lives of the global poor and meeting the desires of much of the world’s population. By acting with integrity when making decisions the UN will greatly improve its reputation and its ability to regulate international environmental actions.

It is imperative that we properly utilize ERU’s tendency to promote cooperation. Equity is the only possible climate for cooperation and ERU could act as a catalyst for opening cooperative consultations between nations and thus contribute towards security of the planet. The UN remains the focus of our hopes for a more equitable and peaceful world and, if it properly utilizes the opportunity offered by the water crisis and the concept of equitable, reasonable and sustainable utilisation, it can improve governance actions regarding the environment and as a result, help to legitimize existing global hierarchies.

Tags: environmental law, equitable and reasonable use, international law, iwl, jus cogens, legitimacy, un, water, water law, WTO