The Contested Core of Climate Law

Benoit Mayer’s new book The International Law on Climate Change is founded on the premise that the principle against transboundary harm is the core principle of climate law. Here, I show that premise to be mistaken. The principle against transboundary harm does not apply to the problem of climate change because climate change is not a transboundary problem. Even if the principle were applicable to climate change, it has been displaced by the climate change treaty regime. Because climate change is in fact a “commons” problem, the core principle of climate law is, or should be, that greenhouse gas emissions must be charged to the polluter (the polluter pays principle).