Gulf War Reparations and the UN Compensation Commission

Reviews / Votes

"The contributions to this volume combine to create a complete and complex mosaic of the profoundly significant work of the UN Compensation Commission relating to liability for environmental harm. Written by leading experts and participants in the process, the book is an excellent resource for scholars and practitioners in the fields of international and environmental law. From efforts to define the concept of environmental damage to deciding difficult issues
of causation, evidence and the appropriate level of compensation, the UNCC blazed a trail for future tribunals faced with claims of liability for environmental damage, whether in peacetime or as a
consequence of armed conflict. The authors have provided a superb and much-needed evaluation this innovative institution and its work."

--Dinah Shelton
Manatt/Ahn Professor of International Law, The George Washington University Law School
"In this book, insiders tell the fascinating story of the successful pursuit of community interest in the restoration of the natural environment affected by the first Gulf War. The members of the "epistemic community" provided what was intended as an essentially political process of fact-finding with guarantees of due process, thus increasing the legitimacy of the post-conflict regime. With its wisdom and fairness, the achievements of the UNCC F4 Panel are
destined to have resonance and relevance for the future of international claims settlement."

--Bruno Simma
Judge, International Court of Justice
"This behind the scenes account of how compensation for environmental damage inflicted by the Gulf War was determined is greatly relevant. The UNCC F4 Panel's innovative methodology, its articulation of international environmental law principles, and its pragmatism surely will guide future architects of environmental compensation schemes as well as arbitrators of environmental cases."

--Hans van Houtte
President, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal
"For centuries, the Gulf's resources, biodiversity and other natural assets have been cornerstones of life and prosperity in the region. Following the invasion of Kuwait in 2000, Iraq ignited more than 600 oil wells and created the world's largest oil spill, estimated at 6-14 million barrels. The authors and editors of Gulf War Reparations and the UN Compensation Commission provide a comprehensive and informative account of how resource injury was determined,
the process of submitting claims by Gulf States affected by the pollution events, and how the environmental claims were evaluated and settled by the UN Compensation Commission. The book's wider message
is that environmental damage does not come free."

---- Andrew Price
Honorary Professor, University of York; Visiting Professor, University of Warwick