(NEWS) New WMU Publication - The Shipping Industry, Ocean Governance and Environmental Law in the Paradigm Shift

December

2014

New WMU Publication - The Shipping Industry, Ocean Governance and Environmental Law in the Paradigm Shift

The latest WMU publication to be released by Springer is The Shipping Industry, Ocean Governance and Environmental Law in the Paradigm Shift authored by Acting Vice President and Associate Professor, Patrick Donner, in cooperation with Research Assistant and PhD candidate, Tafsir Johansson.

The publication examines the corpus of status quo environmental legal regime, geographical issues, and redundant “stakeholder claims” that persist in the Arctic. Consideration is given to different notions, legal theories, and stakeholders, and the authors critically examine the Arctic national legislation. A unique aspect of the book is the Corporate Social Responsibility analysis pertaining to the Arctic. Through logic and reasoning, the authors propose a detailed and intricate new Arctic legal regime that is based on a rational hierarchy.

According to Professor Donner, inspiration for the book came from the increased commercial interest that is developing in the Arctic regime, including the prospects of an increasing commercial traffic in the Arctic sea routes. “These circumstances were the motivation to delve into the all-embracing domino effect as an inevitable result of Arctic commercial ventures,” he stated. By the end of 2012 the outline for the book was complete and collaboration began with Tafsir Johansson in early 2013.

Tafsir began research for the book by observing the interplay of “stakeholder theory” that mirrors Corporate Social Responsibility, and considering that theory in light of Arctic ventures that are dominated by commercial interests. The working hypothesis that brought the two authors together was that environmentalists who endorse “zero tolerance policy” for pristine areas such as the Arctic are promoting a form of unilateral rigidity towards ship-owners. Keeping this aspect constant, the authors began to look at new developments that might bring these opposing sides into balance. According to Tafsir, “in this context, the book follows a given equation that is based on initial theories and looks at how the opposing claims and increasing commercialization side of the equation can be balanced with the hypothesized appropriate legal norm.”

For a free preview or to purchase the publication,click here.

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