Konstytucjonalizacja ochrony środowiska we Francji – 20 lat obowiązywania Karty środowiska naturalnego
The Constitutionalisation of Environmental Protection in France – 20 Years of the Environmental Charter

Summary/Abstract: In 2005, the Environmental Charter became part of the French ‘constitutional bloc’, having been incorporated into the Preamble to the Constitution of the 5th Republic. Since then, lower-level legal acts have been examined for compliance not only with the Constitution, but also with the Environmental Charter. The said document – consisting of 10 articles and a preamble – constitutes an innovative declaration aimed at ensuring the highest standard of environmental protection. By means of the Charter, rights such as the right to live in a sustainable and healthy environment as well as the right of access to information have been permanently incorporated into the French legal order. The said document also sets out the following principles: prevention; caution; sustainable development; and the ‘polluter pays’ principle. One of the major challenges arising from the Charter has been the transposition of its provisions into lower-level legal acts, as well as the practical application and interpretation thereof, both by the constitutional judiciary and national courts.

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