Lex Ad Astra: Non-state Actor Accountability for Space Pollution

Outer space has long been considered the last untouched wilderness. However, non-State actors are increasingly active in space, heightening the risk of space pollution. Space law, designed during the Cold War, is State-centric and makes inadequate provision for non-State actors. In the face of this emerging threat, this book examines potential avenues of redress in space law, including the Outer Space Treaty, along with international environmental law, international criminal law, international humanitarian law, and international human rights law. It also reviews the national legislation adopted by space-faring States at the domestic level. In parallel, the book examines the deeper theoretical implications addressing non-State actor conduct under international law. Ultimately, it proposes a ground-breaking new international law instrument to hold non-State actors responsible for space pollution.

Matthew Gillett, Ph.D. (2018), Leiden University, is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) of Law at Essex Law School and the United Nations Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. He has published extensively on international law, human rights, and environmental protection.

Katja Grünfeld is a Research Assistant and PhD Candidate at the Institute of Air Law, Space Law and Cyber Law at the University of Cologne, Group Leader of Working Group Space for the Institute/DLR Project Cologne Manual on the International Law of Space Traffic Management, Member of the Space Law Committee of the International Law Association, and Prospective Member of the International Institute of Space Law with multiple publications in the field of space law.

Iva Ramuš Cvetkovič is a Researcher and Assistant at the Institute of Criminology at the Faculty of Law Ljubljana, and a PhD scholar at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana.