Category: Environmental law

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Right to repair gathering momentum but Quebec stalling

The right to repair is gathering momentum.

So far, at least 25 U.S. states are expected to file repair bills. Across the Atlantic, France introduced a repairability index that compels manufacturers of five categories of electronic devices to rate the repairability of their products. More recently still, the European Commission recently opened a public consultation to gather stakeholders’ feedback on the upcoming proposal for a Directive on Sustainable Consumption of Goods — Promoting Repair and Reuse. Meanwhile in Australia, legislation was passed that requires car manufacturers to give parts, tools, and documentation to independent repair shops. Continue reading “Right to repair gathering momentum but Quebec stalling”

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Justiciability a major hurdle for climate change lawsuits, assert legal experts

A proposed climate change class action suit by a Montreal environment group against the federal government was denied certification by the Quebec Court of Appeal after it held that it was not justiciable, the latest in a series of climate change litigation cases that have been thwarted by the justiciability doctrine, prompting questions over the successful viability of using broadly framed Charter arguments in climate justice suits in Canada.

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Arctic freeze

The Arctic Ocean, the smallest and shallowest of the world’s five oceans, is melting. Cursed by hostile weather and rough seas, the forbidding, remote and one of the least understood environments in the world is now beginning to open up under the weight of climate change. Navigation, not long ago unthinkable, is increasingly feasible. Large ships are beginning to explore the area in ways that Viking settlers and European merchants could only dream of.  Shrinking Arctic sea ice allowed last year a tanker carrying a cargo of liquefied natural gas to travel through the northern sea route for the first time without an icebreaker escort.

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