The Legislature of the City of Buenos Aires took a crucial step on Thursday by approving the creation of the Working Group for the development of the Environmental Code.
The goal is to establish clear environmental protection rules and promote sustainability, thus improving the quality of life of the residents of Buenos Aires.
This initiative, driven by legislator Alejandro Grillo and the Union for the Homeland bloc, seeks to settle a pending issue for almost 30 years. The approval of an Environmental Code for the Capital, a mandate of its Constitution.
Path to the Environmental Code: a participatory and necessary process
This new Working Group, whose formation was approved by the Legislature with a 41-5 vote, will ensure the participation of key actors: politicians, academics, and the public. It aims to improve the quality of life of Buenos Aires residents and ensure a healthier future in general.
The project of an Environmental Code was already planned in the Environmental Urban Plan (PUA), sanctioned in 2008. However, the lack of action led to a legal demand. In 2023, Judge Guillermo Scheibler declared the unconstitutionality of the omission and ordered the Legislature to remedy the breach promptly.
In his ruling, Judge Scheibler highlighted the time that had passed “without complying with the constitutional mandate” and pointed out that this delay violated the right to citizen participation in the development of environmental regulations.
Legislator Grillo emphasized the complexity of the task: “The development of the Environmental Code is imperative and must be designed by competent actors. The current environmental legislation, which will serve as the basis, may have legal gaps and contradictions.
Therefore, an organized working team is essential to address these issues and achieve the approval of the code“.
What the Buenos Aires Constitution says
The City’s Constitution does not include an Environmental Code, but provides for its creation as a set of provisions regulating environmental quality and risk management for sustainability.
This Code, which must be debated in a two-reading procedure with a public hearing, still needs to be approved to consolidate the regulations on environmental matters and ensure citizen participation, as stipulated by Article 89 of the Constitution.
Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the City has several laws regulating specific environmental aspects. This is the case of the Environmental Impact Assessment Law (Law 123) or the Urban Solid Waste Law (Law 1854). However, the development of the Environmental Code would seek to integrate and complement these regulations into a broader and cohesive framework.
