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The Current International Legal Setting for the Protection of the Outer Space Environment: The Precautionary Principle Avant La Lettre
Author(s) -
Cinelli Claudia,
Pogorzelska Katarzyna
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
review of european, comparative and international environmental law
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.37
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 2050-0394
pISSN - 2050-0386
DOI - 10.1111/reel.12026
Subject(s) - outer space , space (punctuation) , precautionary principle , space debris , space policy , space environment , political science , development (topology) , law and economics , computer security , environmental ethics , business , law , geography , computer science , economics , debris , physics , philosophy , ecology , mathematics , meteorology , mathematical analysis , geophysics , biology , operating system
Over the last decades, space‐based technologies have significantly contributed to the socio‐economic advancement of humankind. While reliance on outer space has increased, the security of the space assets enabling the benefits has significantly decreased due to a laissez‐faire approach in the exploitation and exploration of outer space and the subsequent proliferation of space debris. The problematic issue of space debris is getting to the point where it should be treated with precaution. The precautionary principle, broadly applied in the protection of the terrestrial environment, may also have the potential to enhance the regime for environmental protection of outer space. This article analyzes the current legal regime, at international and E uropean levels, for the protection of the near‐Earth outer space environment, focusing on the issue of space debris. The article examines the rationale behind an avant la lettre application of the precautionary principle to the protection of the outer space environment.