This course will cover the following topics:
- Theories of environmental decision-making including the use of expert science in decision-making.
- Political, administrative and institutional contexts.
- Models of environmental regulatory regimes based on scientific information and the assessment of risk.
(For example, environmental impact assessment, gene technology, hazardous chemicals, fisheries management regimes, forestry, endangered species). - Sources of scientific uncertainty and standards of ‘regulatory science'.
- Theory, method and law of risk assessment.
- Legislative standards of preventive and precautionary regulation.
- Case law on standards of science.
- The precautionary principle in international law and in international trade disputes.
- Interpreting and implementing the precautionary principle in domestic law (threshold test and precautionary action).
- Scientific uncertainty, the precautionary principle, and the threshold test.
- Legal and institutional reform.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
By the conclusion of this course, it is intended that students who have successfully completed all the course requirements will be able to:- Identify, analyse and critically evaluate regulatory regimes that incorporate risk assessment and risk management approaches to achieve environmental protection;
- Examine, analyse and reflect on scholarly and theoretical material from multiple disciplines about the nature and use of expertise in environmental and administrative decision-making;
- Examine, analyse and reflect on relevant administrative law about expertise in administrative decision-making including in environmental risk assessment regimes;
- Apply relevant law and theory to critically evaluate environmental risk assessment regimes;
- Independently develop and execute research and analysis of a problem or aspect of environmental risk assessment regimes and communicate in written form.
Other Information
This is an intensive course with a 3 day compulsory intensive (see LLM timetable for dates).
Approximately 6 weeks from the completion of the intensive your final assessment will be due. Contact with fellow students and the convenor, both prior to the intensive and after, is conducted via the Wattle course site.
Indicative Assessment
Assessments are likely to consist of:- Class participation (10%)
- Research Essay (90%, 6,000 words).
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
24 Hours of face to face teaching (3 day Intensive). The course will also require advanced preparation through assigned readings. In total, it is anticipated that the hours required for completion this course (class preparation, teaching and completion of assessment) will not exceed 120 hours.
Click here for current timetable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Preliminary Reading
Students must rely on the approved Course Study Guide which will be posted to the Wattle course site approximately 4 weeks prior to the commencement of the course.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 3
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2016 | $3252 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2016 | $4638 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.