Rethinking State Responsiblity in International Space "environmental" Law

Download or read book Rethinking State Responsiblity in International Space "environmental" Law written by Irene Ekweozoh and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This thesis assesses the current legal regime of State Responsibility in the exploration and use of outer space as it concerns space debris prevention. It argues that the proliferation of space debris is attributable to a lack of clarity in the current regime regarding the duty imposed on state and non-state actors for its prevention. It is contended that this concern must be addressed through regulation in order to be meaningful. In support, it interrogates the current status quo of state responsibility for the space activities of non-state entities and how this differs from state responsibility in international environmental law. The objective is to show that the vicarious responsibility of states for non-state actors under current international space law and the disharmony between international space law and environmental law reinforces irresponsible conduct in space activity. As a preventive measure, it advocates for a return to the jurisprudence on "Mankind" that was the basis of the Outer Space Treaty. It suggests that concern for "all mankind" can be used to impose a duty of due regard on all space actors. In this regard, it advances a case for collective responsibility of all space actors by recommending a "Protocol on Collective Responsibility in the Prevention of Space Debris" to be executed by all space actors as a mandatory mechanism to compel the pursuit of uniform space debris prevention measures. " --