Section 87p. 87

PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW COMPENDIUM VOLUME I

with social progress and the advance of production,

science and technology, the capability of man to improve

the environment increases with each passing day.

6. A point has been reached in history when we must

shape our actions throughout the world with a more

prudent

care

for

their

environmental consequences.

Through ignorance or indifference we can do massive

and irreversible harm to the earthly environment on

which

our

life

and

well

being

depend.

Conversely,

through

fuller knowledge and wiser action, we can

achieve for ourselves and our posterity a better life in an

environment more in keeping with human needs and

hopes. There are broad vistas for the enhancement of

environmental quality and the creation of a good life.

What is needed is an enthusiastic but calm state of mind

and intense but orderly work. For the purpose of attaining

freedom

in

the

world

of

nature,

man

must

use

knowledge to build, in collaboration with nature, a better

environment.

To

defend

and

improve

the

human

environment for present and future generations has

become an imperative goal for mankind-a goal to be

pursued

together

with,

and

in

harmony

with,

the

established and fundamental goals of peace and of

worldwide economic and social development.

7. To achieve this environmental goal will demand the

acceptance of responsibility by citizens and communities

and by enterprises and institutions at every level, all

sharing equitably in common efforts. Individuals in all

walks of life as well as organizations in many fields, by

their values and the sum of their actions, will shape the

world environment of the future.

Local and national governments will bear the greatest

burden for large-scale environmental policy and action

within their jurisdictions. International cooperation is also

needed

in

order

to

raise

resources

to support the

developing countries in carrying out their responsibilities

in this field. A growing class of environmental problems,

because they are regional or global in extent or because

they affect the common international realm, will require

extensive cooperation among nations and action by

international organizations in the common interest.

The Conference calls upon Governments and peoples to

exert

common

efforts

for

the

preservation

and

improvement of the human environment, for the benefit

of all the people and for their posterity.

Principles

States the common conviction that:

Principle 1

Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality and

adequate conditions of life, in an environment of a quality

that permits a life of dignity and well-being, and he bears

a

solemn

responsibility

to protect and improve the

environment for present and future generations. In this

respect, policies promoting or perpetuating apartheid,

racial

segregation,

discrimination,

colonial and other

forms

of

oppression

and

foreign

domination

stand

condemned and must be eliminated.

Principle 2

The natural resources of the earth, including the air,

water, land, flora and fauna and especially representative

samples of natural ecosystems, must be safeguarded for

the benefit of present and future generations through

careful planning or management, as appropriate.

Principle 3

The capacity of the earth to produce vital renewable

resources must be maintained and, wherever practicable,

restored or improved.

Principle 4

Man has a special responsibility to safeguard and wisely

manage the heritage of wildlife and its habitat, which are

now gravely imperilled by a combination of adverse

factors.

Nature

conservation,

including wildlife, must

therefore receive importance in planning for economic

development.

Principle 5

The

non-renewable resources of the earth must be

employed in such a way as to guard against the danger of

their future exhaustion and to ensure that benefits from

such employment are shared by all mankind.

Principle 6

The discharge of toxic substances or of other substances

and

the

release

of

heat,

in

such

quantities

or

concentrations

as

to

exceed

the

capacity

of

the

environment to render them harmless, must be halted in

order to ensure that serious or irreversible damage is not

inflicted

upon

ecosystems.

The

just struggle of the

peoples

of

ill

countries

against pollution should be

supported.

Principle 7

States shall take all possible steps to prevent pollution of

the seas by substances that are liable to create hazards to

human health, to harm living resources and marine life, to

damage amenities or to interfere with other legitimate

uses of the sea.

Principle 8

Economic

and

social

development

is

essential

for

ensuring a favorable living and working environment for

man

and

for creating conditions on earth that are

necessary for the improvement of the quality of life.

Principle 9

Environmental deficiencies generated by the conditions

of under-development and natural disasters pose grave

problems and can best be remedied by accelerated

development

through

the

transfer

of

substantial

quantities of financial and technological assistance as a

supplement to the domestic effort of the developing

countries and such timely assistance as may be required.

Principle 10

For the developing countries, stability of prices and

adequate earnings for primary commodities and raw

materials are essential to environmental management,

since economic factors as well as ecological processes

must be taken into account.

Principle 11

© Compiled by RGL

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