The League of Nations and the Protection of the Environment

406 Pages·2021·4.742 MB·English

by  Omer Aloni

A Omer Aloni
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Cover illustration: Members of the League of Nations
during an assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, 1920.
Image: Hulton Archive / Stringer / Getty Images
Series cover design by Zoe Naylor.

THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS
AND THE PROTECTION
OF THE ENVIRONMENT
Inthehistoryofhowthelawhasdealtwithenvironmentalissuesoverthe
lastcenturyorso,the1920sand1930sandthekeyroleoftheLeagueof
Nationsinparticularremainunderexploredbyscholars.Bydelvinginto
theLeague’sarchives,OmerAloniuncoversthestoryofhowtheinterwar
worldexpressedsimilarconcernstothoseofourowntimeinrelationto
nature,environmentalchallenges,andhumandevelopment,andreveals
amissinglinkinunderstandingtherootsofourecologicalcrisis.Charting
theenvironmentalregimeoftheLeague,heshedsnewlightonitsroleas
acenterofsurprisingenvironmentaldilemmas,initiatives,andsolutions.
Through a number of fascinating case studies, the hidden interests,
perceptions, motivations, hopes, agendas, and concerns of the League
are revealed for the first time. Combining legal thought, historical
archivalresearch,andenvironmentalstudies,afascinatingperiodinlegal-
environmentalhistoryisbroughttolife.
omeraloniisResearchandPostdoctoralFellowintheFacultyofSocial
Sciences,UniversityofBar-Ilan,Ramat-Gan,Israel.HereceivedhisPhD
fromTel-AvivUniversity(FacultyofLaw).Heholdsresearchaffiliations
with the University of Potsdam, the Rachel Carson Center for
EnvironmentandSociety(LMUMunich),andtheMaxPlanckInstitute
forLegalHistoryandLegalTheory.HewasawardedtheTallinnPrizeby
theEuropeanSocietyforEnvironmentalHistoryforthebestresearchin
2018and2019.
cambridge studies in international
and comparative law: 159
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T H E L E A G U E O F N A T I O N S
A N D T H E P R O T E C T I O N
O F T H E E N V I R O N M E N T
OMER ALONI
Bar-IlanUniversity
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www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781108838191
DOI:10.1017/9781108937399
©OmerAloni2021
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2021
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Names:Aloni,Omer,1982–author.
Title:TheLeagueofNationsandtheprotectionoftheenvironment/OmerAloni,Bar-Ilan
University,Israel.
Description:Cambridge,UnitedKingdom;NewYork,NY:CambridgeUniversityPress,
2021.|Series:Cambridgestudiesininternationalandcomparativelaw;159|Basedon
author’sthesis(doctoral–UniversityatTel-Aviv,2019),issuedundertitle:Backtothe
LeagueofNations:evaluationoftheenvironmentalregime:1919–1939.|Includes
bibliographicalreferencesandindex.
Identifiers:LCCN2020056951(print)|LCCN2020056952(ebook)|ISBN9781108838191
(hardback)|ISBN9781108937399(ebook)
Subjects:LCSH:Environmentallaw–History–20thcentury.|LeagueofNations.
Classification:LCCK3585.A462021(print)|LCCK3585(ebook)|DDC344.04/609042–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2020056951
LCebookrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2020056952
ISBN978-1-108-83819-1Hardback
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URLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments pageix
Introduction 1
1 FightingPollutionMadebyHumankind 34
TheLeagueofNationsandtheEndeavorsoftheConvention
againstthePollutionoftheSeabyOil
1.1 Introduction 34
1.2 HistoricalBackgroundofPollutedSeasandHuman
Concerns 40
1.2.1 PollutedSeasAsaDomesticProblem:ConcernsofOil
PollutioninBritainandtheUnitedStates 40
1.2.2 TheTransnationalPhase:The1923ParisConference,
andtheFirstInternationalConferenceonthePollution
oftheSeabyOil(Washington,1926) 45
1.3 TheLeagueofNationsandtheAntipollution
Campaign 49
1.3.1 TheSave-the-SeabirdsCampaignReachestheLeague:
ASpecialCommitteeofExpertsIsFormed 50
1.3.2 TheCommitteeofExpertsDiscussesthePollutionProblem
andPreparesaSpecialQuestionnairewithaDraft
Convention 55
1.3.3 TheLeagueDistributestheQuestionnairewiththeDraft
Convention;StatesandOrganizationsReply 63
1.3.4 FinalizingtheAntipollutionConvention,andtheBitter
End 76
1.4 Conclusion:Pollution,Seas,andthepost-1945
Period–fromGenevatoStockholmandBack
Again 79
v
vi contents
2 TheLeagueofNationsandtheWhaling
Dilemma 87
2.1 SeaofWhales 87
2.1.1 Introduction 87
2.1.2 GeneralTimelineandOutline 97
2.2 WhalesandWhaling:TheHistoricalBackground
ofWhalinginaNutshell 99
2.3 InterwarDiplomacyandtheRiseofInternational
WhalingLaw 109
2.3.1 PreparingtoLaunchaSpecialQuestionnaire 109
2.3.2 ReplyingtotheLeague:StatesandDifferentOrganizations’
ResponsestotheSpecialQuestionnaire 117
2.3.3 TheCodificationCommitteeSummarizestheReplies
withaSenseofUrgency 128
2.3.4 TowardtheApril1927ExpertsMeetinginParis,andthe
BritishInterdepartmentalConferenceontheQuestionof
InternationalControlofWhaling
(October1927) 140
2.3.5 TheEarly1930sandtheFirstInternationalWhaling
Convention 152
2.3.6 Towardthe1937Convention:TheMediaPicks
aSide 160
2.4 Conclusion 171
3 Sanitation,SpreadingDiseases,andEnvironmental
Concerns:TheLeagueofNations’CampaignforRural
Hygiene 187
3.1 Introduction 187
3.2 BackgroundandHistoricalSurvey:ABriefIntroduction
totheHistoriographyofSanitaryEffortsand
EnvironmentalConcerns 193
3.3 TheLeagueofNations,RuralHygiene,Sanitation,
andEnvironmentalThreats 200
3.3.1 EarlyStepsandPreparations:TheInterchangeProgram
(1928),andtheBudapestConference
(October1930) 205
3.3.2 The1931EuropeanConferenceonRural
Hygiene 212
contents vii
3.3.3 FollowingUpthe1931ConferenceandPreparing
fortheSecondIntergovernmentalConferenceonRural
Hygiene 216
3.3.4 TheIntergovernmentalConferenceofFarEasternCountries
onRuralHygiene,Bandoeng(Java),
August1937 220
3.4 Conclusion 235
4 RawMaterials,theTimberCrisis,andFearsofDeforestation
duringtheInterwarPeriod 248
4.1 Introduction 248
4.2 TimberintheInterwarPeriod 254
4.2.1 AShortIntroductiontotheSpecialInterestoftheLeague
inRawMaterials 255
4.2.2 StrivingforaGlobalTimberRegime:InternationalBodies
ApplyInstitutionalEnergytoInternationalTimber
ProductionandTrade 258
4.2.3 TheTimberWarsofthe1930s 263
4.3 TheTimberChallengeandConcernsofDeforestation:
TheLeagueHarmonizesEconomic,Industrial,
andEnvironmentalPerspectives 265
4.3.1 RegulationoftheTimberTradetoSupportthe
Industry 267
4.3.2 EnvironmentalConcernsAddedtotheGeneral
Economic-IndustrialFramework 275
4.4 Conclusions:A(Comparative)Glimpseofthepost-1945
Period,ForestConservation,andInternational
Law 286
5 EvaluatingtheEnvironmentalRegimeoftheLeagueof
Nations:ComparativeDiscussion 291
5.1 EnvironmentalChallengesandProblemsAsan
AcceleratorforCollectiveInternational
Action 292
5.2 LegalandProceduralWaysinWhichtheLeague
HandledtheEnvironmentalQuestionsAsEvolving
ComplexDilemmas 296
viii contents
5.3 TheLeaguePracticedDifferentModesofInternational
LawthroughItsEnvironmentalRegime 305
5.4 WhoGetstoPlaytheGameofInternationalLaw:New
StatesandNGOs 309
5.5 TheCentralRoleofScientificExpertise 322
5.6 DevotedIndividualPioneers 330
5.7 TheLeagueDidNotSuddenlyBecomean
EnvironmentalShrine 332
6 Conclusion 338
Bibliography 356
Index 365