Tenets of Environmental Procedural Rights

The basis for environmental procedural rights is envisaged in a situation where the members of the public should not only have access to information about the environmental effects of a proposed project within their vicinity but also participate in shaping not only the environmental impact statement (EIS), but also contributing on possible remedial measures against possible impacts arising from a proposed project that may likely have significant environmental impact. In addition, members of the public as stakeholders are enabled to participate in the making of legislation on environment that may likely impact on their lives. Where these, access to information and public participation in decision making on environmental matters are denied, the members of the public should have access to justice. The focus of this chapter is on the major pillars of environmental procedural rights. These rights encapsulated as tenets of environmental procedural rights are discussed subsequently. They are: (i) access to information; (ii) public participation in decision making on environmental matters and (iii) access to justice.