Unpacking the Diversity of Procedural Environmental Rights: The European Convention on Human Rights and the Aarhus Convention

Abstract

Procedural environmental rights have been found to be an effective way of securing environmental protection, but they are often discussed as a single, uniform standard and are associated with similar effects on environmental decision-making. This view needs reconsideration. Comparing the procedural environmental rights guaranteed in Europe by the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the Aarhus Convention (AC), this article argues that these rights differ considerably in objective, content and scope. Taking note of these differences helps to concretize the doctrine of procedural environmental rights and supports more realistic conclusions about the contribution of procedural environmental rights to environmental governance.

Keywords: Human Rights and the environment, environmental rights, procedural environmental rights, European Convention on Human Rights, Aarhus Convention