The Principle of Sustainable Development as the Basis for Weighing the Public Interest and Individual Interest in the Scope of the Cultural Heritage Protection Law in the European Union

Adam Kozień

doi:10.3390/su13073985

Abstract

The concept of sustainable development is widely used, especially in social, environmental and economic aspects. The principle of sustainable development was derived from the concept of sustainable development, which appears in legal terms at the international, EU, national and local levels. Today, the value of cultural heritage that should be legally protected is indicated. A problematic issue may be the clash in this respect of the public interest related to the protection of heritage with the individual interest, expressed, e.g., in the ownership of cultural heritage designates. During the research, scientific methods that are used in legal sciences were used: theoretical–legal, formal–dogmatic, historical–legal methods, as well as the method of criticism of the literature, and legal inferences were also used. The analyses were carried out on the basis of the interdisciplinary literature on the subject, as well as international, EU and national legal acts—sources of the generally applicable law. Research has shown that the interdisciplinary principle of sustainable development, especially from the perspective of the social and auxiliary environmental aspect, may be the basis for weighing public and individual interests in the area of legal protection of cultural heritage in the European Union. It was also indicated that it is possible in the situation of treating the principle of sustainable development in terms of Dworkin’s “policies” and allows its application not only at the level of European Union law (primary and secondary), but also at the national legal orders of the European Union Member States.

Highlights

At the basis of the formulation of the concept of sustainable development, which the principle of sustainable development derives from, was an issue of protection of the environment from broadly perceived human activity, including the activity contributing to economic development [1] (p. 81)
Sustainable development is identified in majority with environmental issues, one should clearly emphasize that the assumptions of the concept significantly extend beyond the environmental protection, because they refer to broadly perceived social, economic and environmental aspects, and they are strongly connected with the principle of intergenerational justice, which stands at the foundation of the cultural heritage protection
One should state that the principle of sustainable development, present in the European Union law, deriving from the broad, interdisciplinary, multi-aspect and multi-level concept of sustainable development, may be used in reference to the broadly perceived problems of cultural heritage protection in its social aspect, especially taking into consideration the principle of intergenerational fairness

Summary

Introduction

At the basis of the formulation of the concept of sustainable development, which the principle of sustainable development derives from, was an issue of protection of the environment from broadly perceived human activity, including the activity contributing to economic development [1] (p. 81). At the basis of the formulation of the concept of sustainable development, which the principle of sustainable development derives from, was an issue of protection of the environment from broadly perceived human activity, including the activity contributing to economic development [1] The concept of sustainable development, and sensu stricto its elements, has been gradually implemented in the international, national and local law. It turned into the principle of sustainable development formulated in various legal acts. For the implementation of the principle of sustainable development to be effective, it is necessary to introduce the appropriate legal instruments at the international, European Union, national and local level, especially in the branch of administrative law [3]. The cultural heritage protection law, and more narrowly perceived historic buildings protection law, derives

Objectives

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion