Simon Marsden, Protecting the Third Pole: Transplanting International Law
| Date | 01 May 2020 |
| Pages | 313-315 |
| Published date | 01 May 2020 |
| DOI | 10.3366/elr.2020.0641 |
Simon Marsden holds a Chair in Energy Law at the University of Stirling and is a well-established author in the area of environmental protection in Asia. In his previous book with the same publisher,
A potential reader would be intrigued to open this book if only to find out what the “Third Pole” is. As the author explains, “the Third Pole consists primarily of the high-altitude terrain of a number of countries connecting central, south, southeast and east Asia” (1). The connection to the Arctic and the Antarctic, is justified by the “Third Pole” region containing more snow and ice than anywhere outside of the two traditional poles (11). The geographical and jurisdictional scope of the book is, thus, concentrated on the regional environmental governance in the regions of Hindu Kush Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau, primarily focusing on tourism and energy development through hydropower plants.
After an introduction, chapter two examines the theory of legal transplants in domestic and international law, with a focus on environmental regulation. The author draws on classic writers on transplants, such as Watson and Legrand, concluding that while “the question of appropriateness and receptivity of the local culture will always be asked”, legal transplants are an effective and an “established technique of diffusing laws from one place into a range of different contexts” (61). Subsequent chapters then focus on specific environmental protection issues. In each of them, the author introduces the problem and the current regulatory framework, before introducing legal instruments from a different geographical area and considering if they would make appropriate legal transplants for the “Third Pole”.
Chapter three, thus, focuses on protected areas. It considers the categorisation and purpose of establishing such areas and the ways in...
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