Reconstructing Legal Frameworks for Post-Mining Reclamation Guarantees and Ecological Justice

Waste management remains a major environmental challenge in Bone Regency, South Sulawesi, directly affecting citizens’ constitutional right to a healthy environment. This study analyzes the implementation of the 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) principle within the local waste management system and its relation to the realization of constitutional environmental rights. Using a socio-legal (juridical-empirical) approach, it integrates normative analysis of the legal framework with empirical findings from field observations, interviews, and documentation at the Passippo Final Disposal Site (TPA) and the Palakka 3R Waste Processing Facility (TPST). The results reveal a significant gap between legal norms and practical implementation. While TPST Palakka applies the 3R principle through community-based sorting, composting, and recycling, TPA Passippo continues to rely on open dumping without processing. This disparity stems from weak institutional capacity, inadequate infrastructure, low public awareness, and limited interagency coordination. The study highlights the need to institutionalize the 3R principle through regulatory reform, capacity building, and participatory governance to ensure the fulfillment of constitutional environmental rights and promote ecological justice at the local level.

The Colombian State haspromoted different adjustments to the country’s mining model, generally with the intention of increasing foreign investment, increasing production, and increasing State income from the use of mineral resources, but this has led to the emergence of different judicial processes. In which the government’s reforms have been questioned. In this context, the article aims to evaluate the jurisprudential developments of the Colombian Constitutional Court and the Council of State from an environmental justice perspective. Thus, this text reconstructs the jurisprudential debates generated by the judicial actions presented by members of Colombian civil society, develops the basic dimensions of an idea of environmental justice, and evaluates the impacts and transformations generated by judicial decisions in terms of mining regulations and public policies. It is based on the jurisprudential analysis of the highest Colombian courts and a critical analysis based on environmental justice. It is found that although jurisprudence has imposed some limits and has served as a counterweight to the actions of the executive, it is still necessary to deepen environmental justice approaches to resolve controversies involving mining.

Objective: This theoretical essay aims to critically analyze the planetary governance of rare earth elements from the perspective of environmental justice, highlighting the contradictions between global sustainability regimes and the disproportionate socio-environmental impacts on the Amazon region. Theoretical Framework: The discussion is grounded in interdisciplinary approaches to planetary governance (Young, 2021; Prantl et al., 2024), green coloniality (Aoki Inoue & Mendes, 2024), and environmental justice (Rockström et al., 2024), combined with theories of energy transition and territorial justice. Method: The study employs a qualitative, theoretical-analytical approach, based on a systematic review and critical examination of recent scientific sources addressing mineral extraction, environmental policies, and the geopolitics of rare earths in the Amazon. Results and Discussion: Findings indicate that global sustainability narratives conceal historical asymmetries and reproduce green coloniality by shifting ecological costs to peripheral regions. As an alternative, the paper discusses Amazonian approaches grounded in local epistemologies, participatory governance, and territorial sovereignty. Research Implications: The study contributes to reinterpreting global environmental governance frameworks and strengthening Amazonian perspectives within debates on ecological justice and sustainable development. Originality/Value: Its originality lies in integrating planetary justice, ecological transition, and Amazonian sovereignty into a new theoretical lens for equitable management of strategic resources.

Spatial disparities in environmental quality and practices are contributing to rising health inequalities worldwide. To date, the field of health promotion has not contributed as significantly as it might to a systematic analysis of the physical environment as a determinant of health nor to a critique of inequitable environmental governance practices responsible for social injustice-particularly in the Canadian context. In this paper, we explore ways in which health promotion and environmental justice perspectives can be combined into an integrated movement for environmental health justice in health promotion. Drawing on Canadian experiences, we describe the historical contributions and limitations of each perspective in research, policy and particularly professional practice. We then demonstrate how recent environmental justice research in Canada is moving toward a deeper and multi-level analysis of environmental health inequalities, a development that we believe can inform a comprehensive research, policy and advocacy agenda in health promotion toward environmental health justice as a fundamental determinant of health. Lastly, we propose four key considerations for health promotion professionals to consider in advancing this movement.

The construction of post-industrial landscapes is increasingly regarded as an important pathway for promoting urban sustainability. However, limited attention has been given to the interconnections between post-industrial landscapes and local villagers in rural contexts. From the perspective of environmental justice, the ecological and cultural-tourism goals of post-industrial landscapes may be mismatched with villagers’ place-based needs. This study examines a typical rural post-industrial waterfront area in China to analyze villagers’ environmental justice. Representative project photographs were collected, and villagers’ perceptions were obtained through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, yielding 98 valid responses (95% response rate). Quantitative measurements of landscape characteristics were combined with pairwise preference evaluations, and the analysis applied the framework of recognition, participatory, and distributive justice. A discrete choice model (DCM) and spatial analysis were then employed to explore the relationships. Quantitative analysis showed that natural vegetation, plazas, industrial heritage, and pedestrian paths had negative effects on villagers’ recognition (β = −0.36 to −0.18), whereas hardscape had a strong positive effect (β = 0.94). Moreover, spatial analysis indicated localized patterns of environmental injustice, highlighting uneven distribution of landscape benefits across the site. Semi-structured interviews revealed villagers’ priorities across landscape design, amenities, local livelihoods, and project implementation, highlighting the importance of safer, more functional, and well-managed spaces. Collectively, these findings underscore the importance of inclusive planning and design strategies that integrate ecological, cultural, and recreational considerations, thereby supporting the sustainable renewal of rural post-industrial waterfronts.

SDG 10 calls for reducing inequalities within and among countries. This chapter evaluates the potential effects of addressing SDG 10 from an environmental justice perspective, which comprises three interrelated dimensions: representative, recognition and distributive justice. We find considerable synergies and complementarities between the SDG 10 targets and goals of environmental justice. However, the disjuncture between SDG 10 and environmental goals within the SDGs may undermine efforts to promote environmental justice. Trade is not included in SDG 10; this is an important gap as markets for forest products can drive forest resource extraction, exacerbating inequalities among actors within global production networks. If SDG 10 addresses structural inequalities, it is also likely to support distributive, representational and recognition justice for forest-dependent populations. However, the myopic translation of its aspirational targets into easily measurable indicators may dampen the potential effects of addressing SDG10 in advancing environmental justice. Addressing ‘migration’ related targets and indicators is likely to elevate the importance of these issues in forestry policy and research, while also prompting a re-thinking of some of the underlying assumptions informing existing research in forestry.

The political and legal framework necessary to ensure access to environmental justice at the national level requires the existence of broad civil and political rights. The focus of this chapter is access to environmental justice under national legal systems in South West Pacific island countries. The issues are explored in two case-studies concerning Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. Procedural rights owe their existence to broad civil and political rights such as the right to free association and the right to information and popular participation in political processes. Access to environmental justice issues can be usefully considered in the apparent failure of constitutional rights and environmental protection laws in PNG. In the South Pacific Islands region, the Solomon Islands is the third largest nation in terms of population and GNP, and the second largest in terms of land area. Keywords: environmental justice; national legal systems; Papua New Guinea; Solomon islands; South West Pacific island

This study examines legal protection for vulnerable communities from the perspective of environmental justice and human rights in the era of climate change. Climate change exacerbates the vulnerability of marginalized groups, thus requiring a comprehensive legal approach. This study analyzes how existing legal and policy frameworks, both at the national and international levels, can effectively protect the rights of vulnerable communities affected by climate change. Environmental justice is the main focus of these frameworks, ensuring that environmental burdens are distributed fairly and do not disproportionately burden vulnerable groups. In addition, the study explores the role of corporate responsibility in climate change mitigation and adaptation, highlighting how business activities can impact the human rights of vulnerable communities. Stakeholder engagement, including consumers and investors, is considered essential in driving sustainable business practices. The study aims to identify gaps in current legal protections and propose policy recommendations to improve environmental justice and human rights for vulnerable communities in the era of climate change. It emphasizes the need for urgent action to protect groups most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, considering ethical, social, and economic dimensions to achieve equitable and sustainable solutions.

Human rights provisions, particularly constitutional environmental rights, are essential to promoting environmental justice. They provide the basis upon which citizens may challenge and thereby limit government’s potential to abuse its powers to deny the citizenry’s fundamental freedoms, which in the contemporary world we live in includes environmental rights. While an increasing number of national constitutions now recognize the importance of integrating environmental concerns, many do not adopt a rights-based approach. The paper argues that although constitutional recognition is important, there are other factors that may promote or limit environmental justice (particularly in developing countries) such as the reliance on resource revenues for national income, sociopolitical history, judicial activism, and ethnic considerations. These arguments are highlighted by the experiences drawn from four case study countries—Nigeria, South Africa, India, and Papua New Guinea. Although these countries share common political history, hence certain shared values, including respect for human rights, they recognize environmental rights at different levels, arguably as a result of the factors listed above. Adopting a comparative analysis of relevant constitutional provisions that form the basis for the recognition of environmental rights in these four countries, the paper highlights how these provisions contribute to the attainment of environmental (in)justice. While adopting the position and concluding that constitutional (environmental) human rights provisions are important to the promotion and attainment of environmental justice in developing countries, the paper posits that it is essential to draw specific attention to other issues that influence the dynamics of environmental justice in such countries.

Ecology and Environmental Justice: Developing an ESA Agenda

ABSTRACTEnvironmental justice sheds light on the distributive and procedural aspects of planning and decision-making. We examined the challenges arising from the perspective of environmental justice on multi-level and participatory environmental governance by exploring the governance of aquatic environments in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. We found three main challenges and potential responses to them. First, even though most of Helsinki’s shoreline is free and/or accessible by road and accordingly used actively by people for recreational purposes, many parts of the shoreline are perceived as inaccessible, reflecting a need to combine factual and perceived accessibility of aquatic environments in detail during the planning processes and to discuss reasons for possible discrepancies between these two. Second, there was a remarkable seasonal variation in the use of aquatic environments, so more attention should be paid to social-demographic factors explaining the distribution of the use of urban nature. Third, it seems to be difficult to capture the variety of perceptions of people and to integrate them into planning and decision-making processes even on a local scale, and this challenge is likely even more pronounced on higher levels of planning and governance. Thus, better integration of regional and local-scale planning procedures should be encouraged. Building on these observations, we conclude that integration of procedural and distributive environmental justice into the practices of the governance of aquatic environments could remarkably decrease unwanted trade-offs and potential conflicts in their use and management.

Legal norms are an invention. In this chapter, I advance an account of the kind of invention that they are and how they are similar to and different from other sorts of norms, and specifically other social norms and moral norms. The idea is to place legal norms in a larger framework for analyzing institutional structure derived from work on institutional agency and to see them as having the same fundamental ontological and normative significance as other norms grounded in the description of organizational structure—adjusting only for their place in relation to other social norms of that type. In a nutshell, I will argue that legal norms are special variety of norms deriving from (i) the adoption of a basic set of institutional roles for a group that (ii) make provision for roles in which authority is invested to make policy within the framework of the institution. The norms governing the roles in the institution derive from the functions associated with the roles in its formation and the additional constraints and duties assigned by way of the institution’s mechanisms for issuing policies. The roles are status roles. Status roles are a specific variety of status function. Status functions are functions that items have in social transactions which they can serve only in virtue of having been collective accepted as having those functions—like being a royal seal or a five pound note. Membership in an institutional group is a status role defined by the nature of the group. Status roles within an institutional group are typically further differentiated into an organized pattern of inter-defined roles. The roles are inter-defined in the sense that the function of each is defined in relation to interactions with others functioning in their roles. The persistence of a stable institution over time consists in the successive occupation of the organized pattern of roles that define it by successive waves of agents. The function of status roles in social transactions requires their possessor to intentionally exercise her agency in the role as appropriate. The concepts of rights and duties associated with a role, and hence norms relating to it, derive from their design functions. The point of calling them rights and duties arises from the recognition that human agents in the roles will not always successfully executed the functions associated with them. The design function is then a regulative ideal. This aspect of our understanding of them is captured in the language of rights and duties. The design function provides a norm with respect to which to evaluate the agent with the role and rules directing and constraining action in the role. The authority of these rights and duties over individuals in these roles derives from their being party to the collective acceptance by which they are maintained. The policies may be enforced by mechanisms that involves forms of coercion in the interest of maintaining a stable and well-functioning institution, but these mechanisms provide external reasons for adherence to the norms, and are not a source of authority (cf. POWs). There may be moral reasons for adherence to the norms as well, but if so these are external to the concept of the rights and duties associated with the role in virtue of its definition. Legal norms are special case in that they are derived from the basic institutional framework in a society as a whole within which all other agential activity takes place and the rules promulgated by its policy making bodies (roughly those who contribute to making law and fixing its interpretation), which by design are to take priority over other social or group policies. This is compatible with making provision for a hierarchy of relevant policy making bodies recognized by the highest level as having authority with respect to more limited geographical regions or subpopulations in the society that have a function of providing a framework of social life and which take priority over other social policies and practices, though still constrained by laws promulgated at higher levels (city, county, state, nation—and similar hierarchies of government). Thus, legal norms are socially constructed, the authority they have derives from the acceptance by those they govern of the roles thereby defined, and the coincidence of legal and moral norms or the generation of moral norms from legal norms is a matter external to the status of those norms as legal.

The novel articulations between the state, markets and civil society arising from the shift to networked environmental governance highlight the importance of creating equal participation opportunities. Relevant questions from an environmental justice perspective are not only who participates, but also with whom, in what, why and how. In this paper, we explore public participation in biodiversity governance that has emerged after the initial designation of a Natura 2000 network in Finland, Greece, Poland and the UK by focusing on distributive and procedural justice. Our analysis, based on focus groups and document analysis, shows that new participatory arrangements have taken the modes of project‐based, market, interest group and e‐governance. These arrangements have been marked by problems in power and knowledge sharing, and in the distribution of conservation costs and benefits, reflecting serious deficits regarding environmental justice. Calls for public participation and wider stakeholder engagement in conservation across Europe should be followed by an acknowledgment of the diversity of perspectives, conflicting interests and social positions and their integration into biodiversity governance. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment

Earth System at Risk: Challenging Environmental (In)Justice

Not so Black and White: environmental justice and cumulative impact assessments