Environmental rights amendment
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An environmental rights amendment, also called a green amendment, is usually added to the bill of rights section of a constitution. These amendments usually guarantee citizens the right to clean air and water. Other rights, such as the right to a stable climate, preservation of natural, scenic, esthetic and historic values of the environment have also been included. [1] [2]
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While environmental rights are mentioned in a number of state constitutions, the state of Pennsylvania was the first to pass an actual environmental rights amendment[3] as part of their state's bill of rights in 1971. Montana added environmental rights in 1972[4]. It was not until 2022 that New York state[5] added an environmental rights amendment to their bill of rights. There is no federal environmental rights amendment.[2]
There are several ways to add an environmental rights amendment to a state constitution. Although each state is slightly different, in general the state legislature has to pass legislation for the amendment, then it goes before the voters to decide if it will actually be added to the state constitution.[6]
A citizen petition can also get an amendment before the people, if the petition can get enough signatures from residents in the state, and go though some other steps, then it can be put before the voters. Citizens in Florida are attempting to do this.[6]
The states of California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia have drafted, or are drafting, legislation to add environmental rights amendments to their state constitutions. Other states may well be added to this list as time goes on. As of March 2024, nine states have legislation proposed that could put it on the 2024 ballot. Hawaii, New Jersey, and Washington states have made the most progress toward this goal. [7] [8]
It is important for the wording of the amendment to be specific so that it is enforceable. With specific rights clearly spelled out, such amendments could potentially keep cases out of courts since citizens and regulators would have clear text to refer to when evaluating potential projects.[8]
Why are environmental rights amendments needed?
businesses afraid of
References
- ^ Jones, Katelyn Joanna (2017-03-04). "Changing the Nature of Our Constitutional Default: The Fight for a Right to a Healthy Environment". USURJ: University of Saskatchewan Undergraduate Research Journal. 3 (2). doi:10.32396/usurj.v3i2.172. ISSN 2292-1141.
- ^ a b van Rossum, Maya K. (2017). The Green Amendment: Securing Our Right to a Healthy Envionment (1st ed.). Austin, TX and New York, NY: Disruption Books. ISBN 978-1-63331-021-6.
- ^ "PA General Assembly". PA General Assembly. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Section 1. Protection and improvement, MCA". leg.mt.gov. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
- ^ "New York State Constitution" (PDF). New York State Constitution. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Holsopple, Kara (2023-07-21). "The movement to add an enviromental rights amendment to every state's constitution". The Allegheny Front. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
- ^ "Green Amendment". National Caucus of Environmental Legislators. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ a b "Green Amendments Gain Traction in More States Ahead of Elections". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2024-03-11.