Guide to International Environmental Law addresses why and how the international system elaborates environmental obligations and monitors compliance with them. The book discusses the relationship between international obligations and national and local law, with particular reference to federal systems. It points out the influence national law has on the emergence of international law and the growing role international norms play in the development and enforcement of national and local environmental policies. It also examines the extent to which environmental protection should be and is taken into account in other regulatory frameworks, from trade law and human rights to disarmament and refugee policy.