Legal status of environmental refugees as a vulnerable categories of the population requiring environmental and legal protection

Abstract

The increase in the number of people forced to leave their homes due to climate changes or other environmental problems is growingsteadily. The number of vulnerable categories of population requiring environmental protection is increasing. In this regard, theconcept of “environmental refugee” has emerged at the global level, which requires clear legal regulation and its formal classificationas vulnerable.The results of numerous studies show that the cause of migration is not only political and economic factors, but also the environmentalsituation in a particular area. To determine climatic factors, a standardized precipitation and evaporation index SPEI is used,which is called the “multi-scalar drought index”, which determines the onset, duration and extent of drought relative to normal conditionsin various systems (rivers, sowing areas, ecosystems).The concept of “environmental refugees” is currently recognized in the Global Compact on safe, orderly and legal migration inaccordance with its 2018 goals.The issue of environmental refugees has been discussed at the UN level since 1985, when UNEP – UN Environment Programexpert Essam El-Hinawi identified environmental refugees as “… people who have been forced to leave their habitat, temporarily orpermanently, due to noticeable changes in the environment (natural or man-made), which endangered their existence or significantlyaffected their quality of life. “The definition of environmental refugees should include the following distinguishing features: forced migration, temporary orpermanent relocation, border crossings, disturbances related to climate change: whether they are natural or anthropogenic.The analysis of acts of “soft law” and international agreements in the context of the legal status of “environmental refugees” givesgrounds to classify “environmental refugees” as vulnerable categories of the population subject to environmental and legal protectionon the following grounds:1) environmental refugees are those who have suffered from natural disasters and slow climate change, which destroys the conditionsof proper existence of each person, protection of his fundamental rights, and therefore they are forced to leave their places ofresidence due to environmentally unfavorable conditions;2) environmental refugees are persons of different ages, health conditions, social status, race and nationality, which already automaticallyclassifies them as “vulnerable”;3) environmental refugees need environmental and legal protection and protection, as well as an appropriate legal mechanism toregulate their status as a community at the international legal level and at the national level.