Rediscovering the origins and inclusion of the public trust doctrine in South African environmental law: A speculative analysis

Abstract

The public trust doctrine was deliberately included in South African environmental legislation; in the best interests of citizens and future generations, it empowers citizens to ensure that the government safeguards the country's natural and cultural environment. This article examines South Africa's environmental law in order to derive an understanding of the origins and potential application of the doctrine. While the prima facie origin of the doctrine is the Bill of Rights right in South Africa's 1996 Constitution, multilateral environmental agreements in Africa appear to have had a significant influence on how the doctrine was conceptualized and embraced. This observation dispels the notion that the doctrine was a hermetic import into South Africa's environmental law from the United States. Furthermore, the analysis finds that the environmental right in South Africa's Constitution parallels the health and wellbeing right granted to its citizens.