ABSTRACT
This chapter gives a lawyer’s view of the problems of protecting the atmosphere and the oceans against pollution and against the over-consumption of resources. It outlines a response to the degradation of these resources. The global commons refers to those portions of the planet and its surrounding space that lie above and beyond the recognized territorial claims of any nation. That includes the atmosphere, outer space and the high seas, together with the potentially valuable seabeds and subsurfaces that have yet to be “enclosed” by any coastal state as part of its territorial extension. As frustrating as one finds it to have an effect on “internal” scenarios, the situation in the commons areas is, in many regards, even worse. One should understand that the liberty of each state to impair the commons is not a principle that is condoned. There are, in fact, any number of lofty declarations of international conferences and commentators that solemnly renounce abuse of commons areas.
