Environment and justice: an analysis of the Márquez case and its impact on Argentine environmental law

Abstract

The text analysed the development of environmental law in Argentina as a response to the harmful effects of human activity on the environment. This field of law emerged with fundamental principles such as prevention, precaution, intergenerational equity, participation and sustainability. The 1994 constitutional reform, through Article 41, granted constitutional status to the right to a healthy environment, consolidating it as a fundamental right of collective incidence. Within this framework, national and provincial laws were enacted, such as the General Environment Law and specific regulations on waste, which established minimum standards for environmental protection. Authors such as Valls, Lorenzetti and Bidart Campos contributed comprehensive views on the environment, recognising its natural, cultural and social dimensions. At the international level, the value of the environment as a basic human right has been highlighted since the 1972 Stockholm Declaration. In case law, the Supreme Court and other courts have reinforced the justiciability of this right through landmark rulings, validating environmental protection against state inaction. The case of Márquez, Evangelina et al. v. Municipality of Colonia Avellaneda was presented as a paradigmatic example where the lack of waste management violated fundamental rights. The legal action brought by the community reflected the importance of citizen participation and the State's obligation to implement effective environmental policies. The analysis concluded that environmental law should be conceived not only as technical regulations, but as part of a collective commitment to a sustainable and equitable development model.