Taking Back Eden: Environmental Law Goes Global

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Introduction

Considering the situation devoted to the environment of the world, it is possible to say that all the nations are bothered with the problems devoted to nature conservation. It should be mentioned that the cases devoted to the protection of the environment from human activities become more and more numerous points at human interest in nature protection. One of the main peculiarities and values of the book Taking back Eden: eight environmental cases that changed the world by Oliver A. Houck is that it offers the information devoted to the law cases where people managed to fight for environmental protection and they managed to win, even though no one believed in the successful outcome of the affairs. The book under consideration points to eight cases connected with the protection of nature which happened in different countries in different years. The only similarity of those cases is that they managed to change the legislation and protect the environment. Storm King, Nikko Taro, Minors Oposa, Great Whale, The Taj Mahal, Lenin’s Trees, Acheloos and Trillium are the cases for detailed analysis.

Storm King

The case under consideration touched Storm King Mountain and the fires which occupied the territory. Even though the summer was too hot, human mistakes were also the reasons for numerous fires which occurred on the territory of the mountain. The issue for conflict appeared to be the building of a pumped-storage hydroelectric power plant aimed at delivering electricity to the whole of New York. There were two groups, those who supported the project which could reduce their taxes, and those who considered the projected danger to the environment. Public environment awareness increased. The combination of mass media, public speaking, governmental support, and public participation and courts managed to promote the law which had become the first environmental law. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was the first law that managed to protect the rights of the citizens. The importance of the case under consideration is that it was the beginning of the civil rights movement which appeared to be very important. The society managed to win the court suit and protect their environment from harmful impact. Even though the victory for Scenic Hudson was short-lived, it was significant in the whole legal sphere. People understood that their impact on the legal issues and court procedures was important if they managed to organize themselves and offer deserving attention plans (Houck 2009). Additionally, much attention was paid to society as for a strong movement which desiring to protect something may ruin the understanding of the existing laws and create another legal document aimed at regulating the environmental issues in the whole world.

Nikko Taro

The case under consideration was really important for the Japanese environment. The main idea of the issue may be covered as follows. The coming Olympic Games required the government to widen the road which involved cutting the trees at the Nikko Toshogu Shrine. The importance of those trees could not be overestimated as they carried ancient value. At the same time, the widening of the road was important as well. Therefore, the government had to decide which project was of the higher importance for them, either the Olympic Games which could increase the economic potential of the country, or the conservation of the natural resources which also carried the historic value for the nation. Considering the case in the law, the Tokyo High Court had to invent the powerful legislation aimed to shrine the forests in the region. The importance of this court case could not be questioned as the country created the law which protected all the natural historic places from modernization. The modern world is changing, the innovations require more space, but nature protection should still be in the first place. Even though economical development was really important for the country, the Japanese government also understood that tradition was important as well. The desire to conserve the environment was not only the care for nature but also the respect to customs. Considering the law from the point of view of the public perspective, the court did all possible to protect the national interests without trying to please the world standards.

Minors Oposa

The situation under consideration may be connected with the Minors Oposa v. Secretary of the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources court case. The main idea of the issue is covered in the desire to protect the rainforests from destruction. The importance of the court decision is that the law agreed that people have the right to a “balanced and healthful ecology” (Houck 2009, 47). The case discussed in the book was crucial as people managed to regulate the situation connected with a cruel attitude to the flora of the country. The absence of appropriate legal acts allowed many organizations to destroy important natural resources. The case proved the Constitution of the country and one more time agreed that people should have the right to a clean environment. The regulation of the situation by the government was also supported by the court suit. What was the importance of the case under consideration? First of all, this case reminded people and various organizations that the government took care of the nature protection and unauthorized intrusion might cause many problems for the companies which violated the law. Additionally, the court procedure reminded the citizens of the country that they could always relate to the government which supported them. There is no great legal importance of the case as the Constitution of the Philippines had the law which protected nature, still, social awareness and trust were much more important.

Great Whale

The case under consideration is devoted to environment protection in Quebec, Canada. The main idea of the case is the protection of the environment from the creation of hydroelectric projects on the territory of Quebec. It should be mentioned that the case under discussion had both opponents and proponents. Those who were against the project referred to the following arguments, damage to the environment, the absence of certainty in the economic outcome of the project, the presence of the alternative variants with better guarantees and less harmful for nature, social problems, violation of the human rights, etc. The proponents of the project referred to the utility of Hydro-Quebec in the hands of one country, the increase of employment, and priorities in management opportunities. The investors also referred to the profit income. Therefore, only society and several environmental organizations were bothered with the harm to the environment which the project could create. The case which was considered in the court involved the interests of the Federal Government, Provincial Government, and Aboriginals. The project was divided into two phases and the court decision impacted the second phase only. The first one was completed without an environmental review. Even though the first phase of the project harmed the environment, the idea that the second phase was not completed encouraged the organizations for active work (Houck 2009). Thus, nowadays Cree and Inuits of Quebec are considered to be the most powerful organizations which take care of the environment and organize several alliances.

The Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal has always attracted the citizens and the guests with its sacred nature and beautiful view. However, the environmental situation in the place has become devastating recently. The reason is in the environment movement raise. One of the main ideas of those environmental drivers who wanted to protect the Taj Mahal directed their demand at the air pollution. Everyone remembered the white wall of the building, however, the yellow taint could be seen on the walls. The case was a suit to the court and the representatives of the environment movement managed to make tourists and the citizens of the country leave their vehicles behind the territory of Taj Mahal. The importance of this restriction cannot be overestimated as the sacred place, valued from the point of view of the religion and history, has gained the prior view (Houck 2009). White walls have both aesthetic value and sacred ones as it is inadmissible to fail to protect such a place. Considering the situation from the legal perspective, it may be concluded that the court case was the first one that protected the sacred places from the environmental impact and the harmful effect from human beings. One more important issue of the court procedure devoted to the environmental protection of the Taj Mahal is that the citizens know for sure that they have an opportunity to express their environmental concerns before the court.

Lenin’s Trees

Lenin’s Trees case is connected with Russia and Lenin. The situation was as follows, people began to cut trees in the park. Lenin forbade the affair having stated that it was the place they fought for. Having called the park and the trees the heritage of the citizens of the country, Lenin prevented cutting the trees. The importance of this situation is that people understood that there were national parks and other places which belonged to the whole nation. Many parks, squares, and other places were called the heritage of the Russian people and were protected by the law. Therefore, people received the right to enjoy nature. However, there was something even more important than nature protection, people received the right to a “favorable environment and unlimited guarantee of protecting this right in the court” (Houck 2009, 111). It should be mentioned that the Royal regime in the country which was the only one before the interference of Lenin did not give people any chance for being able to protect their rights. The case under consideration was one of the first cases which allowed people to suit to courts and participate in the legal procedures for protecting their rights. Even nowadays, the trees and the offspring of the trees protected by Lenin many years ago are called Lenin’s Trees.

Acheloos

The situation called the Acheloos project happened in Greece. The main idea of the conflict was the desire of some people to implement the diversion of the Acheloos river. The government of Greece tried to dry the river, but the legal documents and the court procedure protected those who lived along the river. Acheloos was used by many people as one of the sources of life and the diversion of the river could be too dangerous for some citizens. The importance of the case is in the desire of the government to protect people and conserve the environment helpful for their living. Too much critique in the relation to the Acheloos project prevented the entrepreneurs to change the river direction and leave people without the resources for living. The importance of this legislation for Greece was in the creation of the environment law which protected not only nature and the environment from harmful human actions but also protected people who were dependent on some specific natural resources. It should be mentioned that only the European court managed to make a final decision in the case in early 2006. The case was considered from 1988 and in different years the project either began or was ceased (Houck 2009).

Trillium

The Trillium project was considered between the following two sides, David Syre, the entrepreneur, and Andriana Hoffman, the former director of the Chilean Environmental Commission. The conflict arose around the territory of the humus one of the companies wanted to use for personal needs. According to the commission, the company could use a maximum of one hundred hectares a year, but they wanted to have three hundred hectares. The main reasons for restriction in hectares were environment protection and conservation. The utilization of too much humus too often could lead to its exhaustion and the inability to produce the necessary amount of harvest. The Chilean government managed to solve the problem in favor of the environment as the understanding that flora and fauna were very important for the development of agriculture. The problem was that desiring to have as much land as possible, the organization stated on the project which had never been shown to the public and when the decision was made in favor of environment protection a big question was raised in the existence of that project. The court decision was important for the Chilean government as could be used for reference in other similar cases (Houck 2009).

Conclusion

Therefore, it may be concluded that the cases under consideration were really important for the countries they took place in. Storm King, Nikko Taro, Minors Oposa, Great Whale, The Taj Mahal, Lenin’s Trees, Acheloos and Trillium are the cases that touched the problem of the legislation in the sphere of nature conservation. Each of these cases either reminded the society that the government took care of them or created the legislation which was aimed at regulating nature conservation. These cases were either the first in the country or the fundamental ones. That is why they deserve special attention. Houck (2009) tried to increase the awareness of the readers in the cases which put the beginning to the green movement. It should be stated that the real importance of the cases under consideration is that they are starting for further conservation of the environment and legal protection of the situation connected with nature issues.

Reference List

Houck, Oliver A. 2009. Taking back Eden: eight environmental cases that changed the world. Washington, D.C.: Island Press.

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