UN Council declares access to healthy environment a human right

NEW DELHI: The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) declared ‘Access to a clean and healthy environment’ as a fundamental right. The declaration added a formal weight to the global fight against Climate Change and its consequences.

Although, this resolution is not legally binding, David Boyd, UN special rapporteur on human rights and environment, called this decision a ‘historic breakthrough’ as it has potential to shape global standards. Environmental lawyers said that the decision would help them in building arguments against governments ignoring the already visible effects of climate change.

The text was proposed by Costa Rica, Maldives, Morocco, Slovenia and Switzerland at the UN Council. It was passed with 43 votes in favor and four abstentions from Russia, India, China and Japan. The two main critics of the proposal were United States and Britain, though Britain voted in favor of the resolution, and United States did not vote because it is not a current member of the 47-member council.

United Kingdom ambassador to Geneva, Rita French, said that the reason behind voting ‘yes’ was because it shared the ambition of supporters to tackle climate change. She added that the states are not bound to the terms of the resolution. Catalina Devandas Aguilar, Ambassador of Costa Rica, commented that the decision will send a powerful message to communities struggling with climate hardships around the world.

According to World Health Organisation data, around 24.3 per cent of the global deaths (nearly 13.7 million) can be attributed to environmental risks such as air pollution and chemical exposure. Another proposal led by Marshall Islands to create a new special Rapporteur on Climate Change was also approved on Friday, October 8. It will focus on the human rights impact of climate change.