Practice question
An official insists Principle15 applies only if damage is simultaneously serious and irreversible. The evidence establishes a threat of serious damage, though reversibility is uncertain. What is the textual correction?
- Only irreversible damage matters.
- The text says serious or irreversible, so the claimed cumulative condition is incorrect.
- Reversibility makes seriousness irrelevant in every case.
- No risk assessment is permissible.
- The principle concerns only actual court judgments.
Legal references
- Rio Declaration (1992), Principles1,3–5 and15: https://www.cbd.int/doc/ref/rio-declaration.shtml
- ICJ, Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change, Advisory Opinion, July23 2025, main opinion, paragraphs158 and293–294: https://icj-web.leman.un-icc.cloud/sites/default/files/case-related/187/187-20250723-adv-01-00-en.pdf
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