As of: 08.10.2021 6:13 p.m.
People all over the world should have the right to live in a clean and healthy environment. A corresponding United Nations resolution was adopted by the UN Human Rights Council with a large majority.
The UN special envoy for human rights and the environment, David Boyd, called the resolution a “historic breakthrough”. In it, the United Nations Human Rights Council recognized access to a clean and healthy environment as a fundamental human right.
The resolution was passed by a large majority despite criticism from some countries, particularly the United States and Great Britain. 43 nations voted for the text proposed by Costa Rica, the Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia and Switzerland. Russia, India, China and Japan abstained.
The decision should help to enforce stricter environmental laws in the future and thus to be able to act more effectively against climate change, species extinction and air and water pollution, explained the UN special envoy Boyd.
“A strong message”
The UN resolution has “life-changing potential in a world where the global environmental crisis causes more than nine million deaths each year,” Boyd said.
Costa Rica Ambassador Catalina Devandas Aguilar said the decision will “send a strong message to communities around the world that those facing climate emergency are not alone”.
Right to a clean environment in national constitutions?
The resolution, first discussed in the 1990s, is not legally binding, but has the potential to shape global standards and serve as a basis for argumentation for lawyers and climate activists.
“This resolution is particularly important for all the environmental and human rights defenders who, often at great personal risk, stand up for the protection of land, air, water and the ecosystem on which we all depend,” said Boyd. The special envoy called on governments around the world to incorporate the right to a clean environment in national constitutions.