Constitutional Limits on the Implementation of Legal Instruments Designed to Mitigate the Effects of Climate Change
The Constitution of the Slovak Republic recognizes the right of every individual to a favorable environment and prohibits endangering or damaging the environment, natural resources, and cultural monuments beyond the limits stipulated by law. It also includes the state's obligation to ensure the thrifty use of natural resources, protect the soil and ecological balance, and provide effective care for the environment, including the protection of plants and animals. Additionally, the Constitution establishes that the state's economy is based on principles of a socially and ecologically oriented market economy. Recently, the principle of protecting the long-term sustainability of the state's economy was explicitly added to the Slovak Constitution.
Climate change is one of the most serious challenges of our time. Legal instruments are being adopted at the international level, within regional legal systems—particularly European Union law—and at the national level to respond to climate change. Their aim is to protect the planet’s climate system through measures that reduce greenhouse gas emissions directly or indirectly linked to human activity, promote mitigation efforts, and achieve a low-emission societal development.
The adoption and implementation of these measures in the Slovak Republic are governed not only by the environmental protection commitments mentioned above but also by the principles of economic management and long-term sustainability of the Slovak Republic. Additionally, these measures must respect the protection of property rights, the exercise of which must not harm human health, nature, cultural monuments, or the environment beyond the limits established by law, nor infringe upon the right to conduct business.
The European Court of Human Rights has derived the right to a favorable environment from Article 8 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which guarantees the right to respect for private and family life. This right includes the entitlement to a good quality of life in private, free from disruptive external influences, as well as the right to access information about the environment. The Court has also expanded the scope of this right to impose a positive obligation on states to implement preventive measures that effectively protect individuals from potential industrial accidents or natural disasters. Recent case law addressing so-called climate lawsuits reflects a further evolution in the understanding of the right to a favorable environment. This section aims to examine these issues from the perspectives of constitutional and international law.
Guarantors of the section:
doc. JUDr. Boris Balog, PhD.
doc. Mgr. Liudmyla Golovko, PhD.