Environmental & Risk Assessment Law

Objectives:
On completion of this course it is expected that students will be able to:

• explain, identify and critique environmental regulatory regimes dealing with science, risk, risk assessment and environmental impact assessment
• critically analyse the literature on ‘regulatory science' and other forms of science provided in environmental regulatory regimes.
• understand and explain theoretical perspectives on the role and importance of science and scientific uncertainty (as compared to other factors) in decision-making within these regimes,
• understand, critique and apply the relevant law on the precautionary principle and related concepts within administrative law
• research scientific, socio-legal and legal databases to obtain literature relevant to environmental regulation
• present the findings of research as a well-reasoned paper in written (and possibly also oral) form.

Content:

Selected topics include:

• Theories of environmental decision-making including the use of expert science in decision-making
• Political, administrative and institutional contexts
• Models of environmental regulatory regimes based on scientific information and the assessment of risk
  (For example, environmental impact assessment, gene technology, hazardous chemicals, fisheries management regimes, forestry, endangered species).
• Sources of scientific uncertainty and standards of ‘regulatory science'
• Theory, method and law of risk assessment
• Legislative standards of preventive and precautionary regulation
• Case law on standards of science
• The precautionary principle in international law and in international trade disputes
• Interpreting and implementing the precautionary principle in domestic law (threshold test and precautionary action)
• Scientific uncertainty, the precautionary principle, and the threshold test
• Legal and institutional reform.

Students must rely on the Approved Assessment which will be posted to the course homepage on the ANU Law website, prior to the commencement of the course.

26 Contact Hours (Intensive Delivery)