1

THE FRAMEWORK FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION ON EMERGING

ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS

ONYEJELAM, EMEM C.

Masters student, Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan, Oyo state, Nigeria.

ABSTRACT

The environment is on daily basis being threatened majorly by anthropogenic factors. Man’s

activities have in one way or the other contributed to the degradation of the environment, and if

this continues, the generations yet unborn would have nothing from the environment to depend

on. To address these challenges, various legal frameworks have been put in place. However, to

achieve maximal success, there is need for collaboration between governments as environmental

problems are not limited to a particular territory but can be transnational. This paper would

address the various emerging environmental threats, the legal framework calling for

international collaboration in addressing these threats, the challenges with implementation of

international environmental laws in Nigeria and recommendations in tackling these challenges.

Keywords: Framework, International cooperation, Environmental threats and Agenda 21.

INTRODUCTION

Over the past decades, there have been growing public awareness of threats to the environment.

This has given rise to the demands for legislations to protect the environment from further

deterioration and degradation.

Base on the growing pressure on national government to begin to demonstrate a level of concern

over the general state of the environment, laws (national and international) have been put in

place to address these threats. However, it must be clearly stated that in fighting these scourges, a

national government need not depend on its own effort but must collaborate with other national

governments, be signatories to international conventions and treaties and ratify same, map out

environmental goals, implement environmental policies necessary to protect the environment.

EMERGING GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS

2

Environmental problems stem from two main categories of human activities:1

1. Use of resources at unsustainable levels and

2. Contamination of the environment through pollution and waste at levels beyond

the capacity of the environment to absorb them or render them harmless.

For the purpose of this paper, the writer would be considering the framework for international

cooperation in the light of the above, and laying out various emerging environmental threats

affecting the globe.

CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change refers to any significant change in the measures of climate lasting for an

extended period of time.2 Rising global temperatures have been accompanied by changes in

weather and climate. Many places have seen changes in rainfall, resulting in more floods,

droughts, or intense rain, as well as frequent and severe heat waves.3 As these changes become

more pronounced, the more likely they will present challenges to the society and to the

environment in particular.

Cause of Climate Change

Over the past century, human activities have released large amounts of carbon dioxide and other

greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Majority of these greenhouse gases come from burning

fossil fuels to produce energy; industrial processes, deforestation and some agricultural practices

also emit gases into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases are chemical compounds found in the

earth’s atmosphere and they act like a blanket around planet Earth, trapping energy in the

atmosphere and causing it to warm. This phenomenon is called the greenhouse effect and is

natural and necessary to support life on earth’s climate and result in dangerous effects to human

health and welfare and to ecosystems.4

1 Dinah Shelton and Alexandre Kiss ‘’Judicial Handbook on Environmental Law’’ http://www.unep.org accessed on

19th

January, 2015. 2 United States Environmental Protection Agency ‘’ Climate Change: Basic Information’’ http://epa.org accessed on

19th

January, 2015. 3 Supra

4 Supra.

3

To combat the menace of climate change to the environment, United Nations initiated a

framework Convention on climate change which is the United Nations Framework Convention

on Climate Change.5 The objective of the treaty is to ‘stabilise greenhouse gases (Ghgs)

concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic

interference with the climate system. The treaty set no binding limits on greenhouse gases

emission for individual countries and contains no enforcement mechanisms. In this sense, the

treaty is considered legally non-binding. The treaty instead, provides a framework for negotiating

specific international treaties (called protocols) that may set binding limits of greenhouse gases.6

The Kyoto protocol is an international treaty which extends the 1992 UNFCCC committing State

Parties to reduce Ghgs based on the premise that:

a. Global warming exists

b. Man-made emissions have caused it.

The protocol is based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities- it puts the

obligation to reduce current emissions on developed countries on the basis that they are

historically responsible for the current levels of Ghgs in the atmosphere. As a result, it sets

binding emission reduction targets for 37 industrialised countries, mostly member states of the

European Economic Area. There is a new framework for post-Kyoto protocol and will 7be

negotiated in the December, 2015 meeting of the Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC in Paris,

France.

OZONE LAYER DEPLETION

Today, there is widespread concern that the ozone layer is deteriorating due to the release of

pollutants containing chlorine and bromine. This deterioration allows large amounts of

ultraviolet B rays to reach Earth, which can cause skin cancer, genetic damage, cataract, immune

5 Signed on 9

th May, 1992 and became effective on 21

st March, 1994.

6 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ‘’basic Information” http://www.unfccc.int accessed

on 19th

January, 2015. 7 European Commission ‘’the 2015 International Agreement’’ http://www.ec.europa.eu accessed on 19

th January,

2015.

4

system depression in living organisms, reducing productivity in agricultural crops and the food

chain.8

Major Cause of Ozone Layer Depletion

Scientific evidence has proven that the natural balance of stratospheric ozone has been upset by

the production and release in the atmosphere of ozone depleting substances including,

chlorofluorocarbons (CFC), halons, methyl, chloroform (CH3CCI3 ), carbon tetrachloride, hydro-

chlorofluorocarbon (HCFCs) and methyl bromide. These substances have applications in

refrigerators, air conditions, fire extinguishers, aerosols, agricultural fumigants, solvents for

cleaning electronic equipment and in making of foams.9

The Vienna Convention for the protection of the Ozone layer10

has been judged to be one of the

most successful treaties of all time; having been ratified by 196 States. It acts as a framework for

the international efforts to protect the ozone layer although it does not include legally binding

reduction goals for the use of CFCs, the main chemical agent causing ozone layer depletion. The

legally binding goals were laid out in the accompanying Montreal Protocol which was agreed on

16th 11

September, 1987. Montreal protocol includes a unique adjustment provision that enables

the parties to the protocol to respond quickly to new scientific information and agree to

accelerate the reductions required on chemicals already covered by the protocol. These

adjustments are then automatically applicable to all countries that ratified the protocol.12

LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity refers to the variety of life on Earth at all its levels, from genes to ecosystems, and

the ecological and evolutionary processes that sustain it.13

Biodiversity includes not only species

we consider rare, threatened or endangered, but every basic needs like food, drinking water, fuel,

8 Australian Government ( Department of the Environment) ‘’Ozone layer Depletion’’ http://www.environment.gov

accessed on 19th

January, 2015.

9 Supra

10 It was agreed upon at the Vienna Conference of 1985

11 UNEP ‘’ The Montreal Protocol on Substances that deplete the Ozone Layer’’ http://www.ozone.unep.org

accessed on 19th

January, 2015. 12

Supra- since its initial adoption, the Montreal protocol has been adjusted six times 13

American Museum of Natural History ‘’’What is Biodiversity’’ http://www.amnh.org accessed on 19th

January,

2015.

5

shelter, and medicine. Ecosystems provide services such pollination, seed dispersal, climate

regulation, water purification, nutrient cycling, and control of agricultural pests.14

Over the last century, human activities have rapidly altered the ecosystems and presently, the

planet is undergoing a massive loss of biodiversity. The rate at which loss of biodiversity is

experienced is unprecedented as there is little or nothing done to curb these excesses.15

At the 1992 United Nations conference on environment and Development (the Earth summit) the

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was born. The objectives of this legally binding

global treaty are the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity as well as a fair sharing of

the benefits of the utilization of genetic resources.16

Attempts have been made to achieve the

target of a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and

national level, as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on Earth but

these have not been met.

DESERTIFICATION AND DROUGHT

The threat of drought constantly looms over dry land agriculture. Drought depletes vegetative

cover and may lead to human actions, such as overgrazing and the expansion of farmlands that

propel dry lands more rapidly towards a desert-like condition. Increasing agricultural pressure on

the land due to population growth also aggravates this downward spiral.17

United Nations’ official definition says desertification is land degradation in typically dry areas

from various factors, including climatic variation and human activities.18

A ‘desertified’ land is

a land that can no longer support the same plant growth it had in the past, and the change is

permanent on a human time scale.19

Desertification is caused by over farming, drought,

overgrazing, fire, deforestation, leaving exposed soil. If the nutrient-rich top soil blows or

washes away, plants may not be able to withstand the pressure of the wind and may begin to fade

away gradually.

14

Supra 15

Supra 16

Green facts ‘’Biodiversity- a Global Outlook’’ http://www.facts.org accessed on 19th

January, 2015. 17

Akhtar-Schuster ‘’Causes and Impacts of Declining Resources in the Eastern Sahel: Desertification Control’’

(2000) Bulletin 36: 42-49 18

Earth Observatory ‘’Desertification’’ http://www.earhobservatory.na accessed 19th

January, 2015. 19

Supra

6

The United Nations initiated a Convention- the United Nations Convention to Combat

Desertification (UNCCD) on 17th

June, 1994 with the objective of combating desertification and

mitigating the effects of drought through action at all levels. Article 5 of the Convention

mandates affected State Parties to address the underlying natural and socio-economic factors,

including poverty, which contributes to desertification process as well as promoting and

facilitating the participation of local populations in efforts at combating desertification. In the

national scene (Nigeria), a National Action Programme to combat desertification was developed

considering that Nigeria is losing about 351,000 square kilometers to desertification.20

DEFORESTATION

Forests cover 31% of the land area on earth. They produce vital oxygen and provide homes for

people and wildlife. Forests around the world are under threat from deforestation.

Deforestation is a result of incessant cutting down of trees, forest-burning, development, etc.21

This impacts people’s livelihoods and threatens a wide range of plant and animal species.22

Deforestation has been attributed to poverty, skewed land distribution, grazing and low

agricultural productivity as well as rapid population growth with the attendant pressure on lands.

Deforestation also contributes substantially to increased atmospheric concentration of carbon

dioxide which invariably impacts on the global climate.23

REDD (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) is a framework through

which developing nations are rewarded financially for any emission reduction achieved. REDD

provides a unique opportunity to achieve large-scale emission reduction at comparatively low

abatement costs. In 2010, at the Conference of Parties (COP-16),24

REDD became REDD Plus

(REDD+), to reflect new components which includes-

a. Reducing emission from deforestation

b. Reducing emissions from forest degradation

20

Flower, Little St., “Environmental Challenges in the 21st Century” http://www.journal.au.edu

21 WWF “Deforestation” http://www.worldwildlife.org accessed on 19

th January, 2015.

22 Supra.

23 Mgbolu, A. K. “The Legal Implications of Deforestation, Desertification and Endangered Species in Our

Ecosystem” Igbinedion University Law Journal, Vol. 8, 2009. 24

As set out in the Cacun Agreemnt

7

c. Conservation of forest carbon stock

d. Sustainable management of forests

e. Enhancement of forest carbon stock

REDD+ has the potential to simultaneously contribute to climate change mitigation and poverty

alleviation, whilst also conserving biodiversity and sustaining vital ecosystem services.25

The

convention on Biodiversity also governs the need to combat deforestation.

HAZARDOUS WASTE

Hazardous waste is waste that is dangerous or potentially harmful to our health or environment.26

Hazardous waste can be liquids, solids, gases, or sludge. In Nigeria, harmful waste is governed

by the Harmful Waste Special Criminal Provision Act.27

The Act criminalized the dumping of

hazardous waste on any land, territorial waters and matters relating thereto.28

Under the Act, it is

an offence where any person without lawful authority carries, deposits, dumps, transports,

imports, and offers for sale, buys or otherwise deals in any harmful waste what substances

amount to harmful waste as ‘’ any injurious, poisonous, toxic or noxious substance… which can

subject any person to the take the risk of death, fatal injury or incurable impairment of physical

and mental health….29

A person shall be deemed to have committed the offence if actually he does the act, enables,

aids, counsels, or procures any person to commit the crime.30

It is important to note that the Act

punishes any person in breach of it, whether an individual, body corporate or even a foreigner as

the issue of diplomatic immunity is not protected by the Act.31

On the international scene, it is the Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary

Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal.32

The Convention puts an onus on

2525

The REDD Desk ‘’ What is REDD/ REDD+’’ http://www.theredddesk.org accessed on 19th

January, 2015. 26

United States EPA ‘’ Hazardous Waste’’ http://www.epa.gov accessed on 21st January, 2015.

27 Cap H1 LFN, 2004

28 Section ….. of the HWSCPA

29 Ibid, section 15

30 Ibid, Section 2 (1) of the HWSCPA

31 Ibid, Section 6, 7, 9.

32 First came into force in 1992.

8

exporting countries to ensure that hazardous wastes are managed in an environmentally sound

manner in the country of import. The obligations under the Act include:33

a. Minimize generation of hazardous wastes;

b. Ensure that adequate disposal facilities are available;

c. Control and reduce international movements of hazardous wastes;

d. Ensure environmentally sound management of wastes; and

e. Prevent and punish illegal traffic.

The Bamako Convention on the other hand applies within the African Region.

TRANS-BOUNDARY AIR POLLUTION

Most air pollution problems are caused by local or regional sources of emission. Air pollution

does not stop at national borders but flows from one state to another. Some air pollutants are

known to circulate globally and deposit on land and water bodies far from their sources34

and can

survive for periods of days or even years, and can be transported hundreds or thousands of miles

before they affect the air we breathe, the soils, rivers, lakes and/or foods. Trans-boundary air

pollutants cause a number of different problems e.g. formation of particles, ground-level ozone

which is hazardous to health, formation of acid rain which can damage the roofs of buildings and

sensitive ecosystems, and some that are toxic to human health and environment.35

To tackle the menace of trans-boundary air pollutants, it requires actions and collaboration to

control their formation and effects. The Convention on Long-Range Trans-boundary Air

Pollution36

establishes a framework for intergovernmental cooperation with the aim of protecting

health and the environment from air pollution that is liable to affect several countries. This

cooperation covers the development of appropriate policies, the exchange of information,

research and the implementation and development of a monitoring system.37

33

Department of Environment (Australia) “Basel Convention” http://www.environment.gov accessed on 21st

January, 2015. 34

EPA(US) “Trans-boundary Air Pollution” http://www2.epa.gov accessed on 21st January, 2015

35 National Atmosphere Emissions Inventory “Transboundary Air Pollution” http://www.naei.defra.gov.uk accessed

on 21st January, 2015.

36 Signed on 13

th of November, 1979 and entered into force on 16

th of March, 1983.

37 Europa (Summaries of EU Legislation) “Geneva Convention in Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution”

http://www.europa.eu accessed on 21st January, 2015.

9

The long-range trans-boundary air pollution is defined as “the introduction by man, directly or

indirectly, of substances or energy into the air which have deleterious effects on human health,

the environment or material property in another country and for which the contribution of

individual emission sources. Or groups of sources cannot be distinguished.”38

WATER POLLUTION

Beyond synthetic pollution, fresh water is also the end-point for biological waste; in the form of

human sewage, animal excrement, and rain water run-off flavoured by nutrient-rich fertilizers

from farmyards. These nutrients find their way through the river systems into seas to coastal

ocean zones void of oxygen to aquatic lakes making the connection between the land pollution

and water pollution.39

Water pollution is one of the most serious ecological threats facing us

today. The UNECE Convention on the protection and use of trans-boundary water courses and

international lakes (UNECE Water Convention).40

The convention is intended to strengthen

national measures for the protection and ecologically sound management of trans-boundary

surface waters and ground waters. The Convention obliges parties to prevent, control and reduce

water pollution from point and non-point sources. The Convention also includes provisions for

monitoring, research and development, consultations, warning, and alarm systems, mutual

assistance, institutional arrangements, and the exchange and protection of information as well as

public access to information.41

TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND ORGANIC POLLUTANTS

A toxic substance means any chemical or mixture that may be harmful to the environment and to

human health if inhaled, swallowed or absorbed through the skin.42

Some toxins are natural, such

as poisonous substances coming from living organisms, plants like poinsettias and even some

38

Supra. 39

National Geographic “Freshwater” http://www.environment .nationalgeographic.com accessed on 23rd

January,

2015. 40

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Water Courses done at Helsinki, 17th

March, 1992. 41

Reporting Obligations Database (ROD) “Legislative Instrument Details: UNECE Water Convention”

http://www.rod.eionet.europa.eu accessed on 23rd

of January, 2015 42

Environmental Protection Agency (US) “what is a toxic substance” http://www.epa.gov accessed on 23rd

January,

2015

10

wild mushrooms and berries. Some are contained in most daily household products such as

laundry detergents, floor or furniture polishes, paints, pesticides, oven cleaners, etc.43

The Rotterdam Convention on the prior informed Consent Procedure for certain hazardous

chemicals and pesticides in international trade 44

was adopted to address the dramatic growth in

chemical production and trade and the potential risks posed by hazardous chemicals and

pesticides. The objective of this convention is to promote shared responsibility and cooperative

effort among parties in the international trade of certain hazardous chemicals in order to protect

human health and the environment from potential harm and to contribute to their

environmentally sound use by facilitating information exchange about their characteristics by

providing for national decision-making process on their import and export, and by disseminating

these decisions to parties.45

Other emerging environmental threats include solid waste and sewage-related issues, radioactive

substances/rays, flooding, gas flaring, noise pollution, etc.

FRAMEWORK FOR INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION OF EMERGING

ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS – THE CASE OF NIGERIA.

It is a known fact that environmental problems do not respect national borders, and to this extent,

the protection of the environment in any given country will not happen as a result of the national

efforts of its government alone. In dealing effectively with trans-boundary environmental

challenges, there is need for international cooperation of governments of different countries.

Emerging national environmental threats confronting the world today need not be

compartmentalized considering that their effects are not limited to a particular territory. Where

this is the case, national governments or states are prompted to enter into negotiations or some

43

Supra. 44

The Convention was adopted and opened for signature at the conference of Plenipotentaries in Rotterdam on 10th

September, 1998 and entered into force on 24th

February, 2004. The United Nations Environment’s Program

(UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations started the promotion of voluntary

information on these hazardous chemicals. 45

UNIDO “Rotterdam Convention” http://www.unido.org accessed on 23rd

January, 2015.

11

kinds of formal agreements regulating the scope and content of cooperative action on a particular

problem.46

Nigeria is a signatory to various international treaties on the environment such as:

1) United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

2) Convention on Biological Diversity.

3) United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

4) Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and

their Disposal (Basal Convention).

5) Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

6) Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

(CITES).

7) Desertification Convention.

8) Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, Outer and under Water.

9) Treaty on the non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

10) International Convention to combat desertification in those countries experiencing

serious drought and /or desertification particularly in Africa.

To give these treaties the force of law, they ought to be ratified in accordance with the provision

of the law,

“No treaty between the federation and any other country shall have the force of law to the

extent to which any such treaty has been enacted into law by the National Assembly.”47

While there is so much muse about the ratification and non-implementation of these treaties in

Nigeria, some tend to think differently. Mr. Caleb Mutfwang,48

an environmental legal

consultant, has ranked Nigeria high in the implementation of environmental multilateral

agreements signed by the country. According to him, Nigeria had achieved a lot in the process of

implementing those agreements seeing that there is appreciable progress in implementing the

46

Hanf “Implementation of International Environmental Agreements” http://www.mzes.uni-mannheim.de accessed

on 24th

January, 2015. 47

Section 12 (1) of the 1999 Constitution. 48

Vanguard News Nigeria “Nigeria ranked high on implementation of environmental agreements”, September 3

rd,

2013.

12

Basel Convention, Stockholm Convention, Montreal Protocol and Rotterdam Convention, among

others.

One may be tempted to agree with Mr. Caleb considering the fact that Nigeria has ratified twelve

out of the fourteen International Environmental Conventions, protocols and treaties. But again,

does this assertion reflect on current realities pertaining to our environment today? If truly the

implementation rate of these Conventions, protocols and treaties is high, why does it seem like

development is still far-fetched?

The Basel Convention deals with trans-boundary movement and disposal of toxic and hazardous

waste, and has been ratified in Nigeria. Despite this, we cannot deny the fact that second-hand

electronics products, although banned, are still shipped into the country and displayed in open

places. These products have been held to be dangerous to human health.

The Stockholm Convention which deals with chemicals that had been banned has not stopped

these chemicals from filtrating our markets and houses. For example, the use of ‘sniper’ to kill

insects is dangerous to human health and capable of causing breathing difficulties especially in

children. The challenges of disposing wastes – electronic, domestic, medical – still stares us in

the face, and there is little or nothing we can do about it.

International agreements are faced with the willingness or otherwise of states to be part of it

especially where the state considers the economic and political cost that would result from the

impact that control measures would have on important societal interests.49

International

agreements are vital in protecting the environment, but whether or not these agreements

contribute to modifying the behavior of states remain debatable.

Development is the process of economic and social transformation that is based on complex

cultural and environmental factors and their interactions.50

It is one of the reasons why nations

enter into agreements to resolve a particular problem. Nigeria, in her bid to develop, is a party to

Agenda 21 which addresses most of the environmental problems affecting her.

49

For instance, US unwillingness to reduce its carbon emission, but this has been overtaken by time. 50

Business Dictionary “Development” http://www.business.com accessed on 24th

January, 2014

13

Agenda 21 is a product of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.51

It

addresses the pressing problems of today and also aims at preparing the world for the challenges

of the next century by promoting sustainable development. It reflects a global consensus and

political commitment at the highest level of development and environmental cooperation. Its

successful implementation is first and foremost the responsibility of governments of various

states, although policies and processes, national strategies and plans are crucial in achieving

international cooperation.52

The following chapters of Agenda 21 address the emerging issues as raised in this paper and

other pertinent chapters necessary for international collaboration.

Chapter 2 of the Convention buttresses International Cooperation to accelerate sustainable

development in developing countries and related domestic policies.

Chapter 3 – deals on the need to combat poverty as a means of combating these

environmental challenges.

Chapter 4 – deals on changing consumption patterns.

Chapter 5 – demographic dynamics and sustainability.

Chapter 6 – protecting and promoting human health conditions.

Chapter 7 – promoting sustainable human settlement development.

Chapter 8 – integrating environment and development in decision-making.

Chapter 9 – protection of the atmosphere.

Chapter 10 – integrated approach to the planning and management of land resources.

Chapter 11 – combating deforestation.

Chapter 12 – managing fragile ecosystems: combating desertification and drought.

Chapter 20 – environmentally sound management of hazardous waste in hazardous waste.

Chapter 21 – environmentally sound management of solid waste and sewage-related issues.

Chapter 22 – safe and environmentally sound management of radioactive rays.

51

Held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 3rd

to 14th

June, 1992. 52

Convention on Agenda 21.

14

After the 1992 Agenda, there have been other meetings reappraising the progress or otherwise

and they are:53

RIO +5 – (1997)

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) held a special session to appraise the status of

Agenda 21. The Assembly recognized progress as ‘uneven’ and identified key trends, including

increasing globalization, widening inequalities in income, and continued deterioration of the

global environment as responsible for this uneven progress.

RIO+ 10 – (2002)

The Johannesburg plan of implementation agreed at the world Summit on Sustainable

Development (Earth Summit) affirmed UN commitment to full implementation of Agenda 21,

alongside achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGS) and other international

agreements.

AGENDA 21 FOR CULTURE (2002)

It was the first world public meeting on culture, held in Porto Alegre, Brazil in 2002. It was at

this meeting that the idea to establish guideline for local cultural policies and something

comparable to what Agenda 21 was for the environment, was brought about. These policies were

to be included in various s subsections of Agenda 21 and will be carried out through a wide

range of sub-programs beginning with G8 Countries.54

RIO + 20 (2012)

In 2012, at the UN Conference on sustainable development, the attending members reaffirmed

their commitment to Agenda 21 in their outcome document called ‘’The Future we want’’ ISO

leaders from nations participated.

In essence, Agenda 21 is the framework for addressing the emerging environmental challenges

of the 21st Century although it is a non-binding, voluntarily implemented action plan of the

53

United Nations Sustainable Development ‘’Agenda 21’’ http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org accessed on 23rd

January, 2015. 54

U.S,U.K, Canada, Italy, Russia, Germany, France, Japan.

15

United Nations with regard to sustainable development. Agenda 21 has been criticized as being a

myth cause of its non-legally binding nature. Critics55

of Agenda 21 argue that it requires Local,

States, and Federal initiatives to promote sustainable development rather than Agenda 21.

On the other hand, the Federal Government of Nigeria established a National Advisory

Committee on the implementation of Agenda 21 in 1993. The Committee advises the

government on sustainable development issues and strategies for implementing the provision of

Agenda 21. It is also interesting to know that Nigeria has her own National Agenda 21 which

also covers the environmental and economic aspects of sustainable development in Nigeria.56

CHALLENGES TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF AGENDA 21 IN NIGERIA

Nigeria like other nations is faced with her challenges of implementing Agenda 21 and they are

as follows-

a. Lack of an established Constitutional right to sustainable development –

The Constitution of Nigeria57

makes the protection of environmental rights non-

justiciable which automatically excludes actions that can be brought for the interest of

generations to come. In the case of Minors Oposa v. Secretary of the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources,58

an action was sustained by certain minors who

sued for themselves and for generations yet unborn.59

To ensure sustainable development,

rights of this nature should be enshrined in the constitution and made enforceable.

b. Lack of recognition for Inter-generational equitable rights and Public Trust

Doctrine –

This relates to the principle of inter-generational equity in International Environmental

Law. The concept of equity touches on the issues of fairness, equality and justice in the

55

Heritage Foundation is a staunch critic of Agenda 21, Better World Campaign ‘’Agenda 21: Just Facts’’

http://www.betterworldcamp.org accessed on 23rd January, 2015. 56

Sustainable Development “Economic Aspects of Sustainable Development in Nigeria” http://www.un.org

accessed on 24th

January, 2015. 57

1999 Constitution 58

(1994) 33 ILM 173 59

An injunction was sought to restrain the Philippine government from continuing licensing the felling of timber on

the basis that deforestation from timber logging was causing environmental damage. The Supreme Court held that

the plaintiffs have both a justiciable course of action and the locus to sue.

16

distribution of resources and responsibilities. It implies that each generation owes a duty

to future generations to avoid impairing their abilities to fulfill their basic roles. We must

recognize that all natural resources should be held in trust for the full benefit, use and

enjoyment of our people, not for the now but for generations to come, and to ensure

effective development.60

c. The non-binding nature of International Conventions –

Most International Conventions are non-binding in nature, and in some cases, do not

create any direct obligation on member states to take specific actions. If they did, the

consequences would be remarkable as all known challenges would be assessed and

legislated on.61

To this end, while I admit the importance of International Cooperation in tackling environmental

threats facing the world today, it cannot be denied that the effects of these international

agreements, even after ratification, are minimal at the domestic level. Efforts should be geared

toward ensuring effective participation of member states as well as monitoring their development

and challenges with respect to a particular agreement. This way, development can be assured.

60

Oludayo Amokaye “Environmental Law and Practice in Nigeria” University of Lagos Press: Lagos, 2004. P. 101. 61

R. v. Secretary of State for Trade and Industry ex parte Duddridge & others. Queens’s Bench Division, October

3rd

, 1994.

17

BIBLIOGRAPHY

PUBLISHED WORKS

Oludayo Amokaye “Environmental Law and Practice in Nigeria” University of Lagos Press:

Lagos, 2004.

Vanguard News Nigeria, “Nigeria ranked high on implementation of environmental agreements”

September 3rd

, 2013.

Akhtar-Schuster ‘’Causes and Impacts of Declining Resources in the Eastern Sahel:

Desertification Control’’ (2000) Bulletin 36: 42-49.

Mgbolu, A. K. “The Legal Implications of Deforestation, Desertification and Endangered

Species in Our Ecosystem” Igbinedion University Law Journal, Vol. 8, 2009.

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