International airspace and the high seas are global environmental goods with traditionally unrestricted access. The ensuing environmental impact can be addressed through user charges for air- and sea-traffic. This book assessed the legal conditions for the application of such charges in international, European Community and domestic law.
With a view to these growing environmental impacts of air and sea traffic, different instruments of financial policy have been discussed as a means of reducing such impacts and achieving a more effective protection of global environmental goods. Among the instruments are user charges at the national, European and international level. A user charge is a financial instrument with the following characteristics:
- the use of a certain good or right is made conditional on the payment of a charge;
- the charge is paid in return for access to that good or right;
- a certain behaviour should be guided (guiding effect)
- and generate revenues for a certain purpose.
User charges on global environmental goods should have an ecological guidance effect and mobilise revenues for objectives of environmental policy. When implementing user charges in the area of air- and sea-traffic, the following options are available:
- a levy on passenger tickets or freightage
- fees on waterways and airports
- earmarked charges on kerosene and fuel
- distance-based tolls
- the introduction of an emission-based user charge, especially for CO2 emissions (CO2 charge).
The book is the result of the project "Legal Implementation of User Charges for Global Environmental Goods".
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