CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO ENVIRONMENT IN NIGERIA: A CRITICAL APPRAISAL

Abstract

Environmental degradation is bound to increase as long as human population increases and new technologiesare invented. In order to arrest the problems of environmental degradation, a number of approaches have beenadopted. Among these approaches are the incorporation of environmental protection policies into developmentprograms, the passage of comprehensive environmental legislation covering all aspects of the environment, andthe incorporation of environmental provisions in the constitutions of most countries. Unfortunately, while somecountries make environmental protections in their constitutions enforceable, others do not. In Nigeria, indirectenvironmental provisions were first included in the 1979 Constitution. The direct environmental provision wasembedded in the 1999 Constitution. However, Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution, which contains theenvironmental provisions, is unenforceable. While the Nigerian courts have done nothing tangible to enforce theprovisions of the constitution on environment, on the other hand, the Indian courts have taken positive steps toenforce provisions of the Indian Constitution on environment.