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Dr Arnd Bernaerts;
Letter to the Editor of „NATURE“, 1992

Printed in:

NATURE

Volume 360, 26 November 1992, page 292 Letter to the Editor

Climate change

SIR – The Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and the earlier struggle for a  Convention on Climate Change may serve as a reminder that the 1982  Convention on the Law of the Sea has its tenth anniversary on 10 December. It is  not only one of the most comprehensive  and strongest international treaties ever negotiated but the best possible legal means to protect the global climate. But sadly, there has been little interest in  using it for this purpose. For too long, climate has been defined as the average weather and Rio was not able to define it at all. Instead, the Climate Change  Convention uses the term ‘climate sys- tem’, defining it as “the totality of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and  geosphere and their interactions”. All that this boils down to is ‘the interactions of the natural system’. What is the point of a legal term if it explains nothing?  For decades, the real question has  been who is responsible for the climate. Climate should have been defined as ‘the  continuation of the oceans by other means’. Thus, the 1982 Convention  could long since have been used to  protect the climate. After all, it is the  most powerful tool with which to force  politicians and the community of states into actions. 

Arnd Bernaerts  

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