Abstract:
A number of international environmental law principles are emerged and still emerging mainly from treaties and customary international law. The most common of these principles include principle of State Sovereignty and Responsibility, Pre-cautionary, Prevention, Polluters Pay, Sustainable Development, Public Participation and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities. Whether this principle has enshrined or not under the Ethiopian legal and policy framework, the extent of their incorporations and as to which principle is given higher attention than the other, requires closer assessment. This paper assesses the recognized international environmental law principles from the perspective of the Ethiopian legal and policy framework and argues that although the practical implementation is questionable the most common International environmental law principles are adequately incorporated, either explicitly or implicitly. The paper also argue that the principle of Sustainable Development is given greater attention than other principles since it is treated as an end by itself while the remaining are treated as a means to achieve sustainable development.
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