European Union Approach To The Environmentally Induced Migration. Some de Lege Lata And Policy Remarks

Maria Magdalena Kenig-WITKOWSKA

1. Introductory remarks

There is a general, commonly shared opinion by scientists, politicians and legal writers that environmental factors and climate change in particular, can largely contribute to an increased level of mobility of people and considerably influence migration at international and internal levels.¹

Although the problem has been discussed for decades and has been a subject of debate both in the academic and political fora as a challenge not only for intra-State authorities but also for the international community, the political process has not yet developed any legal framework specifically addressing environmentally induced migrants.

However, there are some legal instruments at international and national levels that might offer some status and protection to certain types of environmentally induced migrants. For example, human rights law applies to environmentally induced migrants, as to all other persons, because the effects of climate change may undermine the enjoyment of several human rights, including the right to live, right to adequate food, right to water, right to health, right to adequate housing, etc.² Also, international environmental law and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in particular, provide the international framework to address climate change issues. Although those treaties do not mention environmentally induced migration and displacement, they contain a number of guiding principles relevant to that subject, such as the “precautionary principle” and the “common but differentiated responsibility principle.”