Credit: CC0 Public Domain
Protecting Australia’s environment is becoming increasingly urgent. According to the most recent State of Environment Report in 2021, we are resorting to “measures of last resort” to prevent species extinctions and ecosystem collapse.
The “rights of nature” concept recognizes all of Earth’s natural elements as having an inherent right to exist and flourish.
Efforts to recognize the rights of nature have attracted considerable international attention, leading to legislative, constitutional, and judicial reform in some countries.
Recognizing the rights of nature principle in legislation has not gained much traction in Australia. However, there have been a few exceptions, such as the law protecting the Yarra river and its First Nations custodianship in Victoria.
Laying down the legal framework for conferring ecosystems with rights is a crucial strategy for preventing species extinctions and ensuring a “voice” for nature.
One strategy to confer rights upon ecosystems is based on legal personhood, which has its own complexities and risks. Critics have expressed concerns from a First Nations perspective regarding the use of legal personhood to assign rights to natural entities.
At a time when environmental threats are turning into catastrophes with increasing frequency, the law can sometimes be slow to respond. The rights of nature is emerging as an idea in social and political debates in Australia, signaling the potential for local action within broad legal frameworks.
Two examples of local leadership in recognizing the rights of nature are the Blue Mountains City Council in NSW and the Shire of Augusta Margaret River local government area in WA.
In 2021, the Blue Mountains City Council received an award for its commitment to embedding rights of nature principles into its operations.