Research on public participation in environmental litigation: empirical evidence in China

Abstract

In severe environmental situation, public participation in environmental litigation is an effective way to enhance environmental governance. To promote public participation in environmental litigation, this study uses the research data in China to analyze the influence of legalization level and public trust in government environmental protection on public participation in environmental litigation, and explores the path to improve the legalization level and public trust. The results show that illegal intervention, the difficulty in filing a case, the economic and time cost, the execution situation, and public trust significantly affect the enthusiasm for public participation in environmental litigation, and there is a positive interaction between the legalization level and public trust. In terms of the improvement path, the establishment of environmental courts and government accountability systems promote public participation in environmental litigation. The policy implications are that the public should be guided to actively participate in environmental litigation by promoting the legalization level, improving public trust in government environmental protection, and perfecting the environmental court system and environmental accountability mechanism, which could be helpful for environmental governance.