L’adozione di un protocollo addizionale alla CEDU sul diritto a un ambiente sano: prospettive e sfide

This paper analyses the proposal to adopt an Additional Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights recognising the right to a healthy environment as an autonomous human right. Despite its growing international and domestic recognition, this right is still absent from the European human rights system. This article explores the potential normative content of the right and argues that codifying it could overcome procedural hurdles and extend environmental protection beyond anthropocentric limits. Drawing on recent case law, the paper highlights the limitations of the Court’s current evolutionary interpretation. It contends that the formal recognition of the right to a healthy environment would strengthen legal certainty, intergenerational justice, and reparation mechanisms, while also allowing for a more effective response to the ecological crisis.