This insightful Research Handbook addresses whether international, national and regional laws are able to address the challenges plastics pose. Expert contributors demonstrate that many laws on this topic are fragmented, and advocate for the development of systemic approaches which engage a broad range of actors to ensure effective regulation moving forward.
Bringing together leading academics and practitioners, the Research Handbook on Plastics Regulation addresses key topics such as the interference of plastics in the human right to health and wellbeing, food security, biodiversity, ocean pollution, trade, and the use of petroleum. It proposes potential routes for the development of future plastics regulation through earth systems law, the circular economy, and intellectual property and life-cycle based approaches to product design. Fundamentally, the Research Handbook emphasises the crucial need for societal and equitable justice with regards to plastics use and the reform of regulatory practices.
Providing legal insight on a pressing global topic, this Research Handbook is invaluable for law students and academics specialising in human rights, intellectual property, law of the sea/ocean governance and environmental law at a national, international or global level. It will also be beneficial to policymakers working in environmental regulation and governance.
Arvustused
The Research Handbook on Plastics Regulation: Law, Policy and the Environment addresses an important topic. The collected studies provide a comprehensive overview of some of the most pressing issues related to plastics regulation. The Research Handbook is well worth reading and serves as a useful reference for officials, policy-makers, and individuals involved in the regulation of plastics. -- Peng Xu and Yuncheng Deng, Chinese Journal of International Law Edward Elgar Publishing, renowned for its expertise in economics, law, political science, environmental studies, and innovation, once again delivers an essential reference with this book. A true legal codex and academic and regulatory benchmark on plastic governance, this volume meticulously examines global legislative frameworks, highlighting both the limitations of current approaches and the opportunities for more effective regulation. Through a comparative and systemic analysis, it underscores the urgent need for coordinated and proactive action, offering concrete pathways towards more coherent and sustainable plastic governance. -- Nadia Boutaleb, Natural Built Social Environment Health There has never been a more important time to understand how law can contribute to tackling the growing problem of plastic pollution. This Research Handbook puts a spotlight on the legal tools available for this task, offering valuable insights into how legal frameworks should evolve to meet the challenges we face. -- James Harrison, Edinburgh Law School, UK
Contents
1 An introduction to plastics regulation: law, policy and the environment 1
Elizabeth A Kirk, Naporn Popattanachai, Richard Barnes and Eva R van der
Marel
PART I PLASTICS IN THE WIDER SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONTEXT
2 Plastics and (the right to) health 17
Graham Hamley and Stephanie Switzer
3 Breaking the plasticsfood connection: challenges and opportunities 38
Elizabeth A. Kirk
4 Plastics and petroleum 59
Tina Soliman Hunter
PART II THE REGULATION OF PLASTICS IN OTHER LEGAL REGIMES
5 Considering the plastics problem from an Earth system (law) perspective 80
Louise du Toit
6 Plastics and biodiversity 101
Edward Goodwin
7 Law of the sea in the Plasticene 122
Karen N. Scott
8 Plastics regulation and international trade 145
Eva R. van der Marel
9 The role of patent law in promoting sustainability transitions with
plastics 167
Rosa Maria Ballardini and Juha Vesala
PART III THE REGULATION OF PLASTICS IN REGIONAL AND
DOMESTIC LEGAL SYSTEMS
10 The European Union and plastics 187
Tiina Paloniitty and Tellervo Ala-Lahti
11 International regulation of marine plastic litter in the North-East
Atlantic 208
Yoshifumi Tanaka
12 Governance of plastics in the Arctic 229
Sarah E. Mackie and Kamrul Hossain
13 Oceania and plastics 248
Karen Raubenheimer
14 The regulation of plastics and plastic waste in Africa 273
Hennie Strydom
15 The regulation of plastics and plastics waste in Kenya 292
Gerphas Opondo
16 Applying the precautionary principle in dealing with the legal
challenges of plastic pollution in the Philippines 312
Rose-Liza Eisma-Osorio
17 Legal issues regarding plastic pollution control in China 330
Yen-Chiang Chang, Kangjie Sun and Yu Wang
18 The opening of the single-use plastics policy window in the United
Kingdom: societal interest and corporate action align 354
Laurel Besco
PART IV THE FUTURE DIRECTION OF REGULATION AND PLASTICS
19 Plastics and the circular economy 375
Richard Barnes
20 Plastics, products and life-cycle thinking in the European Union 398
Rosalind Malcolm and Alexandra Mikheeva-Ashe
Edited by Elizabeth A. Kirk, Professor Emerita, School of Law, University of Lincoln, UK, Naporn Popattanachai, School of Law, University of Galway, Ireland, Richard Barnes, School of Law, University of Lincoln, UK and Faculty of Law, Norwegian Centre for the Law of Sea, UiT The Arctic University of Norway and Eva R. van der Marel, Norwegian Centre for the Law of the Sea, Faculty of Law, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
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