Environmental Regulation and Redress

Module title	Environmental Regulation and Redress
Module code	LAW2016C
Academic year	2020/1
Credits	15
Module staff	Mrs Kate Holtaway (Convenor)

Duration: Term	1	2	3
Duration: Weeks	11

Number students taking module (anticipated)	70

Module description

If you are concerned about environmental destruction and ensuring accountability on a global basis, then learning to articulate your argument and back it up with a sound grasp of the law might help you to make a real difference! The module is crucial to establish a working knowledge of how the law can be used as a mechanism to reconcile competing values in the protection of the environment and seeks to develop an understanding of the legal avenues available to mitigate environmental harm. As an environmentally aware individual what can you do if you feel that another individual or business has committed an environmental wrong? What guidance is given on a global level, and what are the forms of redress where law is ignored? If it is the ‘polluter’ who should pay for environmental damage, how should that principle be enforced, and what immediate action can an individual take where he/she is concerned that irretrievable environmental damage might occur?

Module aims - intentions of the module

You will look at international contributions to UK law and policy and the important role the EU has had in setting environmental standards. You will examine how, during our membership of the EU, we have been obliged in the UK to reflect these decisions in our own legislation. You will critically reflect on the extent to which the law might be used to embed pro-environmental behavior and sustainability.

Various forms of redress will be considered within popular contexts in environmental law, for example climate change, air quality, biodiversity and marine pollution. You will be introduced to the difference between public law responses in the form of legislation and private law controls like negligence and private nuisance. We will also explore potential future avenues for redress as individuals for example through the expansion of the application of a human rights agenda in environmental matters, as well as considering national accountability for wrongdoing.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

1. Identify and explain the historical foundations of environmental law
2. Illustrate the key principles of environmental law
3. Describe the main ethical perspectives of environmental law and policy
4. Analyse the different sectors of environmental regulation
5. Identify and evaluate with minimum guidance the current content and direction of environmental law
6. Use relevant information to explain and discuss how environmental law has developed and is applied in practice

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

7. Relate theoretical perspectives to specific legal cases
8. Assess the methods and rationales for studying environmental law

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

9. Retrieve and efficiently use primary and secondary electronic resources with minimum guidance
10. Participate in discussions on a selected topic and defend an argument in similar discussions
11. Understand and reflect upon substantive and theoretical texts
12. Work independently and manage time efficiently and effectively in preparing for the coursework and the examination
13. Effectively interact with peers for presentations and general discussion, modifying your own position where appropriate

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary each year, it is envisaged that it will cover some or all of the following topics:

The role of international and EU law in the protection of the environment, the role of the environmental principles, and adjudication in environmental matters.

Private law actions, namely under the ‘torts’ of private and public nuisance, trespass, negligence, the ‘rule' in Rylands v. Fletcher and civil liability.

Environmental justice

The Law of the Sea

Habitat Protection

Environmental rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.

The Law relating to protest

Law in Extreme environments. In particular,we will look at the Antarctic Treaty.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
26	124	0

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	22	11 x 2 hour Lectures
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	2	2 x 1 hour workshops
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	2	1 x 2 hour workshop
Guided Independent Study	124	Additional research, reading and preparation relating to each lecture and in preparation for workshop tasks

Formative assessment

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Assessment themed workshop Preparation	Formative discussions	All	Tutor and peer oral feedback

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
100	0	0

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Poster	50	Individual poster worth 1,500 words. 300 word poster including visual, pictorial and diagrammatic information; text must remain legible (font size no less than 10 point) and a separate 1,200-word rationale.	1-13	Written
Essay	50	2,000 words	1-13	Written

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Poster	Individual poster worth 1,500 words. 300 word poster including visual, pictorial and diagrammatic information; text must remain legible (font size no less than 10 point) and a separate 1,200-word rationale.	1-13	August/September re-assessment period
Essay	Essay	1-13	August/September re-assessment period

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Bell, McGillivray, Pedersen, Lees, Stokes, Environmental Law (9th Edition, 2017)

Wolf and Stanley on Environmental Law, Wolf, F and Stanley, N (6^th edition, 2013) Routledge

Finch and Fafinski, Legal Skills, OUP (7^th Edition, 2019). Copies can be found in the library. The textbook explains how to find legal resources from statutes to cases and includes tips on legal writing.

Kramer, EC Environmental Law, Sweet and Maxwell (8^th Edition, 2016)

Connie, Bradney and Burton, English Legal System in Context (5^th Edition, 2010), OUP, Oxford

Partington, M, Introduction to the English Legal System (2019) OUP Oxford

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

An online Electronic Leaning Environment will accompany the course.

Key words search

Environment, law, regulation, EC, environmental, crime, prosecution, public, participation

Credit value	15
Module ECTS	7.5
Module pre-requisites	None
Module co-requisites	None
NQF level (module)	2
Available as distance learning?	No
Origin date	October 2012
Last revision date	17/07/2020