The Principle of Environmental Non-Regressivity

The Principle of No Environmental Regression is a new guiding principle of environmental law and its purpose is to avoid the suppression of regulations or the reduction of their requirements due to contrary interests that do not prove to be legally superior to the environmental public interest. It is the State who must tend to the care of the environment and procure its health and balance in pursuit of sustainable development; this is prescribed by our National Constitution and the diverse legal plexuses that make up the Argentine legal system. In this context, the strengthening and construction of an efficient long-term environmental management -one of the objectives pursued by sustainable development in terms of volumes of goods to be transferred to future generations-, supports the imperative need for the implementation of this principle. In our legal system, it is essential to modify and adapt environmental regulations to the changes that arise; therefore, the incorporation of this principle to the existing ones would make the system more efficient and contribute to a better quality of life for the enjoyment of society as a whole.