While decades of space ventures have led to significant technological advances, space activities have also brought increasing environmental problems. This book examines the current international legal regimes in space law and environmental law in order to ascertain their applicability and efficacy in addressing environmental threats in the space sector. The research suggests mechanisms which could improve environmental protection in the sector and strengthen the environmental element in space law. These mechanisms include a variety of norm-setting strategies used in international environmental management. Special attention is drawn to the potential of environmental impact assessment in the space sector and to dispute resolution procedures. Like other areas of human activities, the space sector should accommodate both economic interests and environmental protection in line with the principle of sustainable development

This book is neither a historical treatise on the genesis and development of space law, nor a survey of the corpus, nor even a work of legal makebelieve, but simply an essay pursuing a line of enquiry opened up by the members of the European Centre for Space Law. It sets out to chart future trends in the light of the emergence of space law as a branch of international law and of the development of space activities themselves (new activities, new players, interpenetration of space law and national laws), a branch in which the rules and forms of international cooperation acquire a new dimension, transcending the concept of 'global' law. It is essentially prompted by a deep aspiration to see a rebirth - a revival - of that law.

The Handbook of Space Law addresses the legal and regulatory aspects of activities in outer space and major space applications from a comprehensive and structured perspective. It fundamentally addresses the dichotomy between the state-oriented characte