Air pollution in Anyang, China. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment said Tuesday that the right to a healthy environment to live in should be considered a basic human right. (Photo: V.T. Polywoda/Flickr/cc)
'The Time Has Come': UN Expert Calls for Global Recognition That Every Human Has Right to Healthy Environment
More than 100 countries have officially acknowledged the right to a clean environment in their constitutions, leaving the U.N. to catch up
An expert official for the United Nations is imploring the international community this week to recognize that all people should have a right to a healthy environment in which to live, a concept that has been enshrined in the constitutions of more than 100 nations but has never received recognition as a basic human right.
"In many ways, the United Nations needs to try and catch up with where national countries are," said John Knox, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Right and the Environment, at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. "The time has come to recognize this formal interdependence of human rights and the environment, not only at national level but at the U.N. level too."
Knox noted that living in a healthy environment affords access to numerous other necessities that have been recognized as human rights, including the right to life, food, and water.
"At the same time, the exercise of other freedoms, including the rights to information, participation, and remedy, is vital to the protection of the environment," he added.
Knox's recommendation came amid a multitude of setbacks around the world as green groups advocate for reduced carbon emissions and pollution in an effort to provide people with a healthy environment, and reverse the accelerating climate crisis.
Also on Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. dismissed a civil rights case in which residents of a largely African-American town said their rights were violated when the government allowed the dumping of toxic coal ash at a landfill there. Residents say the coal ash, which contains mercury and arsenic--and which the EPA itself has linked to serious health problems--has caused nosebleeds, breathing difficulties, and cancer diagnoses in the community.
Air pollution has improved in some major Chinese cities, but remains an issue in much of the country, with coal use rising slightly overall in 2017.
And in Bali, a diver's video went viral after he posted footage on Monday of a huge mass of plastic at a popular diving spot.
The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) applauded the UN expert's long-awaited recognition of environmental human rights, for which the group has advocated for years.
"Environmental degradation and the exhaustion of natural resources constitute some of the biggest threats to the realization of human rights in the 21st century," said Sebastien Duyck, senior attorney for CIEL. "Millions of people do not have access to clean air and clean water. Deforestation, climate change, and biodiversity loss are accelerating. And every week, environmental human rights defenders are killed. On the basis of the Special Rapporteurss report, States now have the responsibility to act to effectively protect the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."
"What remains to be seen is how the Human Rights Council will effectively address what is needed for the protection of the right to a healthy and sustainable environment," Duyck continued. "It is time for the Human Rights Council to act urgently on the Special Rapporteur's recommendation and move toward recognizing the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
An expert official for the United Nations is imploring the international community this week to recognize that all people should have a right to a healthy environment in which to live, a concept that has been enshrined in the constitutions of more than 100 nations but has never received recognition as a basic human right.
"In many ways, the United Nations needs to try and catch up with where national countries are," said John Knox, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Right and the Environment, at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. "The time has come to recognize this formal interdependence of human rights and the environment, not only at national level but at the U.N. level too."
Knox noted that living in a healthy environment affords access to numerous other necessities that have been recognized as human rights, including the right to life, food, and water.
"At the same time, the exercise of other freedoms, including the rights to information, participation, and remedy, is vital to the protection of the environment," he added.
Knox's recommendation came amid a multitude of setbacks around the world as green groups advocate for reduced carbon emissions and pollution in an effort to provide people with a healthy environment, and reverse the accelerating climate crisis.
Also on Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. dismissed a civil rights case in which residents of a largely African-American town said their rights were violated when the government allowed the dumping of toxic coal ash at a landfill there. Residents say the coal ash, which contains mercury and arsenic--and which the EPA itself has linked to serious health problems--has caused nosebleeds, breathing difficulties, and cancer diagnoses in the community.
Air pollution has improved in some major Chinese cities, but remains an issue in much of the country, with coal use rising slightly overall in 2017.
And in Bali, a diver's video went viral after he posted footage on Monday of a huge mass of plastic at a popular diving spot.
The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) applauded the UN expert's long-awaited recognition of environmental human rights, for which the group has advocated for years.
"Environmental degradation and the exhaustion of natural resources constitute some of the biggest threats to the realization of human rights in the 21st century," said Sebastien Duyck, senior attorney for CIEL. "Millions of people do not have access to clean air and clean water. Deforestation, climate change, and biodiversity loss are accelerating. And every week, environmental human rights defenders are killed. On the basis of the Special Rapporteurss report, States now have the responsibility to act to effectively protect the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."
"What remains to be seen is how the Human Rights Council will effectively address what is needed for the protection of the right to a healthy and sustainable environment," Duyck continued. "It is time for the Human Rights Council to act urgently on the Special Rapporteur's recommendation and move toward recognizing the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."
An expert official for the United Nations is imploring the international community this week to recognize that all people should have a right to a healthy environment in which to live, a concept that has been enshrined in the constitutions of more than 100 nations but has never received recognition as a basic human right.
"In many ways, the United Nations needs to try and catch up with where national countries are," said John Knox, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Right and the Environment, at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. "The time has come to recognize this formal interdependence of human rights and the environment, not only at national level but at the U.N. level too."
Knox noted that living in a healthy environment affords access to numerous other necessities that have been recognized as human rights, including the right to life, food, and water.
"At the same time, the exercise of other freedoms, including the rights to information, participation, and remedy, is vital to the protection of the environment," he added.
Knox's recommendation came amid a multitude of setbacks around the world as green groups advocate for reduced carbon emissions and pollution in an effort to provide people with a healthy environment, and reverse the accelerating climate crisis.
Also on Tuesday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the U.S. dismissed a civil rights case in which residents of a largely African-American town said their rights were violated when the government allowed the dumping of toxic coal ash at a landfill there. Residents say the coal ash, which contains mercury and arsenic--and which the EPA itself has linked to serious health problems--has caused nosebleeds, breathing difficulties, and cancer diagnoses in the community.
Air pollution has improved in some major Chinese cities, but remains an issue in much of the country, with coal use rising slightly overall in 2017.
And in Bali, a diver's video went viral after he posted footage on Monday of a huge mass of plastic at a popular diving spot.
The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) applauded the UN expert's long-awaited recognition of environmental human rights, for which the group has advocated for years.
"Environmental degradation and the exhaustion of natural resources constitute some of the biggest threats to the realization of human rights in the 21st century," said Sebastien Duyck, senior attorney for CIEL. "Millions of people do not have access to clean air and clean water. Deforestation, climate change, and biodiversity loss are accelerating. And every week, environmental human rights defenders are killed. On the basis of the Special Rapporteurss report, States now have the responsibility to act to effectively protect the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."
"What remains to be seen is how the Human Rights Council will effectively address what is needed for the protection of the right to a healthy and sustainable environment," Duyck continued. "It is time for the Human Rights Council to act urgently on the Special Rapporteur's recommendation and move toward recognizing the right to a healthy and sustainable environment."