While an important international meeting on the climate (COP26) during which the progress made since Paris will be examined will be held at the beginning of next November, it is likely that the actions taken by the international community will not be up to the standards. climate challenges described by scientists. The challenge is even more difficult when countries meet at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is still relevant. The fight against climate change may not be seen as a priority by some countries.
The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is – again – sounding the alarm on the climate emergency. In 30 years, this is the first time that an IPCC report has used the words “unequivocal” to denote human responsibility for climate change.
Today it is no longer possible to reasonably doubt the severity of the climate crisis caused by human activities.
Climate change is already creating many extreme weather and climate events in all regions of the world. At this rate, there is no doubt that we will all experience more climatic events and with increasing intensity.
These generalized changes are all the more important when they directly or implicitly affect the water cycle. For example, the St. Lawrence River is, due to its vulnerability to climate change, considerably affected. According to experts, the temperatures of the deep waters of the Gulf have registered a significant increase in recent years, which particularly affects the beluga population. The increase in temperature also reduces the water flow and leads to an increase in the concentration of pollutants in the St. Lawrence. Contamination is also the basis of a decline in aquatic food species such as northern shrimp, Atlantic salmon and snow crab.
However, climate awareness on the part of populations, governments and decision-makers is slow to translate into strong actions that would reduce the devastating effects of global warming. As we point the finger at the human, a paradigm shift may well come to the rescue, because climate change is only a consequence of the limitless destruction of nature.
The guarantee of the rights of nature is presented as a tool to achieve an alternative model in the ecological transition. Adopted in 1992, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development proclaims that human beings are at the center of concerns for sustainable development and that they have the right to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature. This ideology which places humans at the center of concerns contrasts with that of the rights of nature which represents an integrated and holistic vision of all life and all ecosystems.
We must indeed learn to live in harmony with nature. Inspired by the legal traditions of indigenous peoples, this trend is part of an ecocentrist current which considers that Man is no longer the “master” of nature, but one species among others.
It implies recognizing the intrinsic values of nature and of the entities which will henceforth become subjects of law. It is therefore indisputable that a profound paradigm shift from anthropocentrism to ecocentrism must take place in order to slow down the current rate of climatic phenomena.
To the recognition of nature as a subject of law must also be added that of a representation. It was proposed that this representation be ensured by guardians who would be supported by the scientific community and will have knowledge of traditional and ancestral practices. These guardians will be able to represent nature at the negotiating table in the context of projects that could significantly impact the fundamental rights of nature. Damage to natural entities would therefore be internalized in the economy, which must take into account the value of healthy ecosystems, as well as their right to be restored and preserved. Moreover, being in the United Nations decade for restoration, we would be obliged to act!
It is in this direction that the mission of the International Observatory of the Rights of Nature (OIDN) falls. Considering that the state of the largest watercourse in Quebec, the St.Lawrence River, has deteriorated over the years, the OIDN has made the recognition of the legal personality of this river one of its flagship projects in alliance with organizations such as Eau Secours, Waterlution and Stratégies Saint-Laurent.
The OIDN has drafted a bill that recognizes the St. Lawrence River as a legal entity and a subject of law. The adoption of such a bill could make it possible to ensure better protection and contribution to its restoration of this river. This initiative is intended to be a structuring project for better governance of our behavior towards the river. Our bill, published since spring 2021, is available in our collective work entitled A legal personality for the St. Lawrence River and the rivers of the world.
To create a citizen alliance around the St. Lawrence River and in line with World Day of Rivers and Rivers, on September 26, the OIDN held a public consultation to hear citizens on the subject. This consultation is continuing and any interested person is invited to answer a series of questions aimed, among other things, at identifying the best stewards of the river, the rights to be recognized in the St. Lawrence River and the relevance of extending this status to other courts. water, such as rivers and lakes.
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