concept of environmental justice by dr.s k gupta

8/12/2019 Concept of Environmental Justice by Dr.S K Gupta

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environmental justice4 therefore4 re8uires a brief discussion on the

concept of justice.

9 hat is justice;< asked )ocrates in %lato=s Republic 4 and eversince4 this has been one of the leading 8uestions of philosophy and all

social thinking. 1 %rof. ohn 'awls4 one of the influential political

philosopher of the twentieth century4 has beautifully highlighted the

importance of the concept of justice. ,e writes :

9 ustice is the first virtue of social institutions4 as truth is of

systems of thought. theory however elegant and economicalmust be rejected or revised if it is untrue> likewise laws andinstitutions no matter how efficient and well?arranged must bereformed or abolished if they are unjust. #ach person possessesan inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare ofsociety as a whole cannot override. "or this reason justice deniesthat the loss of freedom for some is made right by a greater goodshared by others. It does not allow that the sacrifices imposed ona few are out weighted by the larger sum of advantages enjoyed

by many. Therefore in a just society the liberties of e8ual

citi@enship are taken as settled> the rights secured by justice arenot subject to political bargaining or to the calculus of socialinterests. The only thing that permits us to ac8uiesce in anerroneous theory is the lack of a better one> analogously4 aninjustice is tolerable only when it is necessary to avoid an evengreater injustice. 0eing first virtues of human activities4 truth and

justice are uncompromising


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of creatures does God4 or Bature4 intend us to be; hat is ouressential relationship to our fellow human beings4 and whatobligations do we have to one another; here did theseobligations come from; An the other hand4 the 8uestion of justicefocuses our attention on the concrete problems of our times. theory of justice has the extremely difficult task of bridging theabyss between the abstract and the eminently practical. Bo theoryof justice can long remain on the luxurious level of philosophicalspeculation without diving down into the particularities of sociallife but no attempt to solve the problems of daily politics can longsustain itself without reaching up to the heights of philosophy4struggling as )ocrates struggled to come to grips with thedefinition of justice4 with its essential nature and justification


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%hilosophers4 political thinkers and jurists have confronted with the

problem of offering a precise definition of the term justice= on account of

following three difficulties : First 4 the term justice= is assigned different meanings by different

people at different times and different places. Bot only this4 its

implications vary from man to man on account on their varying

interpretations.

econd 4 the idea of justice is a dynamic affair. s such4 its

implications change with the passage of time. Thus4 what was justice in

the past may be injustice in the present and vice versa> it is also possible

that the justice of today becomes the injustice of tomorrow and vice

versa.

Third 4 a further difficulty arises in reconciling the abstract notions

of justice with its practical manifestations. "or instance4 one may talk of

the divine justice or moral justice4 but it will not be conformable to any

set of empirical standards and4 for this reason4 not capable of practical

application. /

ustice connotes different things for different people. The meaning

of justice also depends on our view of society and its various aspects as

also where do we find ourselves in the society. "or a man of law4 justice

means the judgement pronounced by a judge> for a man of religion4

justice means a set of morals and values> for a poor4 justice means

abolition of poverty4 for a worker4 justice means ade8uate wages and

better working conditions4 for a subaltern4 justice means absence of

outrages committed on him> for a feminist4 justice would include

abolition of male domination over female and last but not the least for an

/ . ohri4 .C.4Contemporary !olitical Theory 4 (Bew elhi : )terling %ublishers %vt.3td.4 1EFE "irst #dn.4 'evised 'eprint 1EE&* p. &&7.


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ith the sophists of ancient Greece4 justice mean interest of the

stronger social groups which impose their will on the other groups. s

against this4 %lato in 'epublic4 emphasi@ed on the moral and ethicalelevement= of justice by saying that it means performing one=s duties with

all abilities and capacities towards the social whole. ristotle highlights

the distributive= aspects of justice and holds the view that justice means

e8ual share to the e8uals and une8ual share to the une8uals. It may be

pointed out that both %lato and ristotle propounded the philosophical

conception= of justice. )ubse8uently4 this philosophical conception of

justice was mixed up with the natural idea= of justice developed first by

the )toics and then followed by the 'oman lawyers. fter that justice

assumed a religious complexion when Christianity became the official

religion of the 'oman empire.

#.* Na!ural La+ The$rie' $& Ju'!i%e

The natural theory of justice may be understood as an extension ofthe philosophical theory4 it treated justice as an ideal of absolute value

whereby the right order could be established. hat the )toics meant by

nature was that the ruling principle in the universe was reason=. Their

idea of living in agreement with nature= was4 therefore4 fundamentally a

canon of living according to the norm which man ought to reali@e. This

idea was borrowed by the 'oman lawyers who took justice as an ultimateend. The distinctive contribution of the 'oman lawyers4 however4 lies in

their integration of the idea of natural justice= with the positive law of the

)tate with the result that &us ci'ile (civil law* and &us gentium (law of

nations*4 as they called it4 were insisted upon to be in conformity with the

law of nature.


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stable and secure government. ,owever4 subse8uently4 under the guise of

sovereignty of states=4 the #urope saw the Thirty ears ar. In order to

restraint states= unbridled pursuit of selfish policies ,ugo Grotius4 preached a body of duties based on natural law4 known later as

international law=.

In the municipal sphere4 individual4 also faced tyranny of sovereign

and it gave rise to the domestic struggle for immunity from the abuse of

the sovereign power. In support of this movement the natural law doctrine

of social contract was refurbished by ohn 3ock who also advocated fornatural right to own property. ohn 3ock championed the revolution of

1/77?1/7E4 and idea that positive law might thus be overborne by natural

law sustained the merican colonies in their successful defiance of the

0ritish %arliament in the fateful years 1FF-?1F71. nother way of

controlling governmental power was put forward by the "rench

%hilosopher !ontes8uieu who propounded doctrine of separation of power= of the state. In "rance the continuing need to protect the

individual against an oppressive monarchy found expression in the

'ousseau=s Theory of general will= in which aforesaid theory of social

contract underwent yet another revision. The idea of general will has

given the birth to the institution of democracy. 'ousseau=s theory was

utili@ed as the philosophy of the "rench 'evolution4 1F7E.

#.0 S$%iali'! The$rie' $& Ju'!i%e ) Mar1i'!2 Anar%hi'!2 Dem$%ra!i%

S$%iali'!

If socialism4 in its essence4 means4 as it really is4 not a very

favourable attitude towards capitalism4 all of them are the socialists : the

anarchists4 for example condemn capitalism as a charter of economic

exploitation> the !arxists provide a severe criti8ue of capitalist mode of


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production> the democratic socialists see4 in capitalism4 the worst form of

moral degradation. If socialism is the political philosophy of the working

class or a doctrine that claims to fight for the cause of the workers4 thenall of them?the anarchists4 the !arxists and the democratic socialists?are

socialists. If socialism4 regards exploitation as the conse8uence of uneven

distribution of social wealth4 then all of them can4 and in fact should

have4 claim to be socialists. If socialism means justice for the worker4 the

poor4 the lowly4 the downtrodden4 then all are4 indeed4 socialists. 11

#.3 Li4er!arian Ju'!i%e ) 5a e62 Ra+l' and N$7i%6

The libertarian justice generally stands opposite to socialist view of

justice. It is individualistic and follows the notion of liberty. In economic

term4 it demands : 9no more redistribution in political terms4 it asks for

a minimal state> in social terms4 it admits the claims of ine8uality.

%rominent philosophers of libertarian justice are ". . ,ayek ( The

Constitution of %iberty 4 1E/D*4 ohn 'awls ( A Theory of Justice 4 1EF$*and 'obert Bo@ick ( Anarchy, tate and (topia 4 1EF+*.

#.8 Ra+l' $n Ju'!i%e 9 A Redi'!ri4u!i$ni'! Plea &$r Ju'!i&ied

Ine:uali!

Ane of the most interesting modern attempts to defend principles

of justice is found in ohn 'awls=s A Theory of Justice )*+ - 4 as now

reformulated in !olitical %iberalism (1EE&*. Ane cannot think about

justice4 one commentator observed4 without talking a position in 'awls=s

Theory of Justice .1$

11. rora4 B. . L wasthy4 ).).4 !olitical Theory 4 (Bew elhi : ,ar? nand%ublications4 1E7/ #dn.*4 p. $FF.1$. "reeman4 !. . .4 %loyod/s Introduction To Jurisprudence, (3ondon : )weet and!axwell 3td.4 $DD14 )eventh #dn.*4 p. -$&.


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In !olitical %iberalism 4 'awls postulates a four?stage se8uence

whereby the two principles of justice ( liberty= and e8uality=* are

incorporated into the institutions and policies of a constitutionaldemocracy.

The first stage is the 9original position


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It is interesting to note differences between the !arxian notion of

opposing classes at different stages of history and the subaltern

groupings. hereas in the !arxian thesis4 these antagonistic classes areeconomically determined groups4 in the subaltern connotation4 the

groupings are socially and culturally determined as well. 1-

The feminist philosophy4 including its political theory4 speaks of

man=s domination of woman as a curse inflicted on her by a socially?

structured?male society. hat is actually a natural sex?ine8uality is made

a social gender ine8uality. The base on which lies feminism is the idea ofe8uality. "eminism abhors ine8uality between man and woman4 and

conversely demands e8uality as the very core of society. 0ecause woman

is regarded une8ual to man4 she is made to suffer throughout her life: her

subordination4 powerlessness and oppression are the conse8uences of

male dominance. ustice4 in feminist perspective4 demands escapism from

woman=s internali@ation of female gender4 and the low self?esteem4apathy and sense of helplessness that goes with it. The feminists do not

regard law to be neutral in disputes between man and woman> the idea of

justice is4 by its very nature4 male?structured. The feminist perspective on

justice means4 among others4 elimination of all male domination4 e8uality

of rights4 bridging the public and the private spheres4 and creation of

society4 culture and politics in new4 rather non?patriarchal forms. 1/

*. Phil$'$ hi%al and The$re!i%al Frame+$r6 $& En(ir$nmen!al

Ju'!i%e

The concept of environmental justice has been closely linked with

the new tide in global environmentalism. Concept of environmental

justice has emerged as a new version of justice and it has been linked4 in

1- . rora and wasthy , op. cit., p. $7E1/ . Ibid . , pp. $ED?E1.


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many ways4 with the earlier versions of justice such as philosophical4

religious4 ethical4 social4 economic and political justice. 1F

,ereinafter4 we have attempted to present the theoreticalframework of environmental justice under the following two broader

heads.

*.#.*.# En(ir$nmen! Ju'!i%e Under An%ien! Indian Tradi!i$n.

ccording to %rofessor A.%. wivedi4 the relationship between

human beings and nature attracted the seers of the 6edic period in a

manner incomparable to any other religious and cultural traditions. The

6edic seers acknowledged that the material causes of this creation

happened to be the !anch 0ahabhutas ("ive Great #lements*>

traditionally they are enumerated in the following order as earth4 air4

space4 water and light?fire. These five !ahabhutas are cosmic elements

1F. "or the academic writings relating to environmental justice4 environmentalism andenvironmental movements4 )ee generally4 )hastri4 ).C..4 #n'ironmental %a1(3ucknow : #astern 0ook Company4 "irst #dn. $DD$*> !artine@? lier4 oan.4 The

#n'ironmentalism of the !oor (Bew elhi : Axford 5niversity %ress4 "irst edn.$DD-*> Guha4 'amacandra (ed.*.4 ocial #cology (Bew elhi : Axford 5niversity%ress4 $DD1*> Guha4 'amachandra.4 #n'ironmentalism 2 A 3lobal $istory (Bew elhi:Axford 5niversity %ress4 $DDD*> Guha4 'amachandra and !artine@? lier4 oan.44arieties of #n'ironmentalism 2 #ssays 5orth and outh (Bew elhi : Axford5niversities %ress4 1EE7*> Gadgil4 !adhav and Guha 'amachandra.4 This Fissured

%and 2 An #cological $istory of India, (Bew elhi4 Axford 5niversity %ress4 1EEE*>Khoshoo4 T.B.4 Gandhian #nvironmentalism: n 5nfinished Task4 1/(1* IA I (1EEF*D1?1/> !ishra4 '.%.4 Indian orldview and #nvironmental Crisis Gadgil4 !adhav and Guha4 'amachandra4Towards a %erspective on #nvironmental !ovements in India4 -E4 Indian Journal of

ocial Wor6 (1EE7*4 +-D?+F$> ndharia4 anaki and )engupta4 Chandan4 The#nvironmental !ovement: Global Issues and the Indian 'eality4 -E4 Indian Journal of

ocial Wor6 4 (1EE7*4 +$$?++E> 0andyopadhyay4 ayanta and )hiva4 6andana4 %olitical#conomy of #cology !ovements 'ao4 !anisha49#cofeminism4 #nvironmentalism and omens= !ovement in India: n nalysis


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which create4 nurture4 and sustain all forms of life thus they play an

important role in preserving and sustaining the environment 17.

The Athar'a 4eda (about $DDD 0C* is perhaps the first of its kindof scripture in any spiritual tradition where the respect to the earth has

been propounded. The !rith'i u6ta maintains that attributes of earth

(such as its firmness4 purity and fertility* are for everyone4 and no one

group or nation has special authority over them. It has been said that

human greed and exploitative tendencies have been the main cause of

environmental destruction.

ccording to ,indu scriptures4 people must not demand or

command domination over other creatures. #co?spirituality and eco?care

re8uire that the entire universe is seen as an extended family4 with all

living beings in this universe as members of the household. This concept4

also known as 4asudha' 7utumba6am (4asudha means earth> 7utumba

means extended family*4 refers to all human beings as well as othercreatures living on earth as members of the same extended family. Anly

by considering the entire universe as a part of our extended family4 we

can (individually and collectively* develop the necessary maturity and

respect for all other living beings.

"rom the above discussion4 it may be said that people of India have

a rich religious4 social and cultural heritage of environmental justice.,owever4 it is an irony that despite of this rich heritage India has been

considered as one of most polluted nation. It appears that we the people

17. A.%. wivedi4 Classical India= in ale amieson (ed.*. A Companion to #n'ironmental !hilosophy, (!assachusetts: 0lackwell %ublishers Inc4 $DD1* &F ?-1 at&7. ee also 4 wivedi4 A.%. and Tiwari4 0.B.4 #n'ironmental Crisis and $indu

Religion (Bew elhi: Gitanjali %ublishing ,ouse4 1E7F*4 iscussion under the title9#nvironmental %olicy uring ncient India< in )ingh4 )ukh %al4 #n'ironmental %a1and !olicy on Air !ollution in India 4 (Bew elhi : )atyam 0ook4 $DD-4 "irst #dn.* pp.D1?D7.


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of India have forgotten their rich ancient religious4 ethical and cultural

environmental traditions. )imilarly we have not performed our duties

relating to the environment as envisaged in the Constitution of India.Conse8uently4 our natural as well as human environment have been badly

polluted and degraded and we have also experienced one of the worst

industrial disaster known as 0hopal mass disaster.

*.* En(ir$nmen! Ju'!i%e Under M$dern En(ir$nmen!al

M$(emen!'


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Chronologically4 the first current is the defence of immaculate

nature4 the love of old?growth forests and wild rivers4 the cult of

wilderness= represented already a hundred years ago by ohn !uir and

the )ierra Club in the 5nited )tates. )ome -D years ago4 ldo 3eopold=s

%and #thic appealed not only to the beauty of the environment but also to

the science of ecology. The cult of wilderness= does not attack economic

growth as such4 it concedes defeat in most of the industrial world4 but it

fights a rearguard action= (3eopold=s phrase* in order to preserve the

remnants of pristine natural space outside the market. $1 It arises from the

love of beautiful landscapes and from deeply held values4 not frommaterial interests. Conservation biology4 as it has developed since the

1E/Ds4 provides scientific support for this first current of

environmentalism. mong its achievements are the 0iodiversity

Convention in 'io de aneiro in 1EE$ and the remarkable #ndangered

)pecies ct in the 5) 4 whose rhetoric appeals to utilitarian values but

which sets a clear priority for preservation over market use. e need not

answer or even ask here how the step from descriptive biology to

normative conservation is taken4 or in other words4 whether it would not

be consistent for biologists to let evolution run its course towards a sixth

great extinction of biodiversity. In any case4 conservation biologists have

concepts and theories of biodiversity (hot spots4 keystone species* which

show that the loss of biodiversity proceeds by leaps and bonds. Indicators

of human pressure on the environment such as , B%% (humanappropriation of net primary production of biomass? show that less and

less biomass is available for species other than humans and those

associated with humans. If not scientific reasons4 there are other motives

to preserve nature4 aesthetic and religious4 even utilitarian (future edible

species4 future medicines*. !oreover4 some argue that other species have

a right to exist: we have no right to annihilate them. This current of$1. Ar4 rather4 outside the industriali@ing economy4 one should say4 because nature

protection in the form of a network of scientific nature reserves.


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environmentalism sometimes appeals to religion as so often happens in

the political culture of the 5nited )tates. It may appeal to pantheism or to

oriental religions less anthropocentric than Christianity and udaism.

Aver the last &D years the cult of wilderness= has been represented at the

activist level by the deep ecology= movement which favours a

biocentric= attitude to Bature in opposition to an anthropocentric

shallow= attitude. eep ecologists dislike agriculture4 whether traditional

or modern4 because agriculture has historically grown at the expense of

wildlife. The main policy proposal coming out of this first current of

environmentalism consists in keeping nature reserves4 called national parks= or something similar4 free from human interference.

*.*.* The G$' el $& E%$>E&&i%ien%**

The currents of environmentalism are indeed intermingled4 but the

first current4 the cult of wilderness=4 has long been challenged by a

second current4 worried about the effects of economic growth not only

on pristine areas but also on the industrial4 agricultural and urban

economy4 a current here bapti@ed as the gospel of eco?efficiency=4 which

focuses on the environmental and health impacts of industrial activities

and urbani@ation4 and also of modern agriculture. This second current of

the environmental movement is concerned about the whole economy. It

often defends economic growth4 though not at any cost. It believes in

sustainable development=4 in ecological moderni@ation=4 in the wise

use= of resources. It is concerned with the impacts of the production of

commodities4 and with the sustainable management of natural resources4

and not so much with the loss of natural amenities or the loss of the

intrinsic values of nature. 'epresentatives of this second current scarcely

$$. !artine@? lier4 oan4 op. cit .4 pp. D-?1D.


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use the word nature=> rather4 they use natural resources= or even natural

capital= or environmental services=.

#cology thus becomes a managerial science mopping up theecological degradation after industriali@ation. Chemical engineers are

especially active in this current. 0iotechnologists tried to jump into it

with promises of engineered seeds which will dispense with pesticides

and will perhaps syntheti@e atmospheric nitrogen4 though they have

encountered public alarm at genetically modified organisms (G!As*.

*.*., En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e and !he En(ir$nmen!ali'm $& !he P$$r *,

0oth the aforesaid first and second currents of environmentalism

are nowadays challenged by a third current4 variously called the

environmentalism of the poor4 popular environmentalism and the

environmental justice movement. It has also been appropriately called

livelihood ecology4 even liberation ecology. This third current of

environmentalism points out that economic growth unfortunately means

increased environmental impacts4 and it emphasi@es geographical

displacement of sources and sinks. Thus the industrial countries are

dependent on imports from the south for a growing part of their growing

re8uirements of raw materials or consumption goods4 so that the oil and

gas frontier4 the aluminum frontier4 the copper frontier4 the eucalyptus

and palm oil frontiers4 the shrimp frontier the gold frontier4 the transgenicsoybeans frontierMare advancing into new territories.

The main thrust of this third current is not a sacred reverence for

Bature but a material interest in the environment as a source and a

re8uirement for livelihood> not so much a concern with the rights of other

species and of future generations of humans as a concern for today=s poor

$&. !artine@? lier4 oan4 op. cit .4 pp. 1D?1+.


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humans. It has not the same ethical (and aesthetic* foundations of the cult

of wilderness. Its ethics derive from a demand for contemporary social

justice among humans.The environmental justice movement in the 5nited )tates is an

organi@ed social movement against local instances of environmental

racism=. It has strong links to the civil rights movement of the 1E/Ds. Ane

could say that4 even more than the cult of wilderness4 this movement for

environmental justice is a product of the merican mind so obsessed with

racism and anti?racism. Grass?roots projects in inner cities and industrialareas around the country have drawn attention to urban air pollution4 lead

paint4 transfer stations for municipal garbage and ha@ardous waste4 and

other environmental dangers that cluster in poor and minority

neighborhoods=. )o far4 environmental justice as an organi@ed movement

has been almost confined to its country of origin4 while popular

environmentalism or livelihood ecology or the environmentalism of the poor are names given to the myriad of movements in the Third orld that

struggle against environmental impacts that threaten poor people who are

in many countries a majority of the population. These include movements

of peasants whose crops or pasture land have been destroyed by mines or

8uarries4 movements of artisanal fishermen against modern high?tech

trawlers or other forms of industrial fishing that destroy their livelihood

even as they deplete the fish stocks4 and movements against mines or

factories by communities damaged by air pollution or living downstream.

This third current receives academic support from agroecology4

ethnoecology4 political ecology and to some extent4 from urban ecology

and ecological economics. It has also been supported by some

environmental sociologists.


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The convergence between the rural third orld notion of the

environmentalism of the poor4 and the urban notion of environmental

justice as used in the 5) 4 was suggested by Guha and !artine@? lier.$+

%rof. !artine@? lier compared the environmental justice movement in

the 5) and the more diffuse environmentalism of the poor worldwide4

in order to show that they can be understood as one single current. ,e

points out that in the 5) 4 a book on the environmental justice

movement could well carry the title or subtitle The environmentalism of

the poor and the minorities=4 because this movement fights for minority

groups and against environmental racism in the 5) 4 but the notion of

9the #nvironmentalism of the %oor< is concerned with the majority of

humankind4 those who occupy relatively little environmental space4 who

have managed sustainable agroforestal and agricultural systems4 who

make prudent use of carbon sinks and reservoirs4 whose livelihoods are

threatened by mines4 oil wells4 dams4 deforestation and tree plantations to

feed the increasing throughput of energy and materials of the economy

within or outside their own countries.

ccording to %rof. !artine@? lier what minorities and majorities

are depends on context. The 5) has a growing population which

represents less than - per cent of the world=s population. Af the

population of the 5) 4 minorities= comprise about one?third. In the

world at large4 the majority of countries4 which together are the majority

of humankind4 have populations which in the 5) context would be

classified as belonging to minorities. The Chipko movement4 or the Chico

!endes struggle in the 1EFDs and 1E7Ds4 were environmental justice

$+. ee4 Guha4 'amachandra and !artine@? lier4 oan4 4arieties of #n'ironmentalism,(Bew elhi : A5%4 1EE74 "irst Indian #dn.* Chapter 1 9The #nvironmentalism of the%oor< (pp. D&?$1*4 Chapter $ 9"rom %olitical #conomy to %olitical #cology (pp. $$?+-*.


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conflicts4 but it is not necessary or useful to interpret them in terms of

environmental racism. The environmental justice movement is potentially

of great importance4 provided it learns to speak not only for the minoritiesinside the 5) but also for the majorities outside the 5) (which locally

are not always defined racially* and provided it gets involved in issues

such as biopiracy and biosafety4 or climate change4 beyond local instances

of pollution. The civil rights heritage of the environmental justice

movement of the 5) is also useful worldwide because of its

contributions to non?violent Gandhian forms of struggle.

*.*.0 En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e 9 Cri!i%i'm' and Re' $n'e'

It has been stated in our foregoing discussion that the

environmental movements have been concerned with purely ecological

issues including wilderness preservation4 endangered species4

overpopulation4 recycling and energy consumption. The environmental

justice movement is seen by some as an attempt to shift the focus of theenvironmental movement away from these issues toward more

anthropocentric concerns such as racism4 classism4 and sexism since these

forms of oppression lead to une8ual burdens of environmental pollution

being felt by people of color4 women and low?income people. ,owever4 it

should be noted that the %rinciples of #nvironmental ustice adopted at

the "irst Bational %eople of Color #nvironmental 3eadership )ummit in1EE1 suggest that environmental justice is not solely concerned with

anthropocentric issues since several principles stress the ecological

interconnectedness of all species4 including human.

,. Rela!i$n'hi 4e!+een Main'!ream En(ir$nmen!al M$(emen!

?Su'!aina4ili! M$(emen!@ and En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e

M$(emen! ?S$%ial Ju'!i%e M$(emen! in En(ir$nmen!@


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%rof. ndrew obson in his pioneering work entitled #n'ironment

and Justice (1EE7* has studied the aforesaid relationship between the two

environmental movements and presents six conclusions Htheses -9

whichmay be summari@ed as under :

Fir'! The'i' : "irst Thesis concludes that sustainability= and justice=

may be related in three fundamental ways :

(i* The environment as something to be distributed

(ii* ustice as functional for sustainability (poverty eradication is pre?

condition for sustainability4 0rundtland 'eport 1E7F*

(iii* ustice to the environment (here environment= is a recipient=

rather as an ingredient= in doing justice.*

Se%$nd The'i' : )econd thesis concludes that neither environmental

sustainability nor social justice has determinate meanings4 and this opens

the way to legitimi@ing the pursuit of either of them4 in terms of the other4in a number of ways4 by tweaking or by making fine adjustments strategy.

Third The'i' : Third thesis concludes that the concerns of the

environmental movement and movements for social justice are

fundamentally different as far as the natural= environment is concerned4

although they may sometimes coincide.

F$ur!h The'i' : "ourth thesis concludes that the 8uestion of whethersustainability and justice are compatible objective can only be resolved

empirically4 and the range and depth of empirical research re8uired to

resolve this 8uestion has not been done. 'elationship is a complex one

and it is therefore unwise to make determinate claims about them. ny

statement regarding the relationship between them needs to be prefaced

by an explanation of what type of social justice and what kind of$- . obson4 ndrew4 #n'ironment and Justice, (5K : A5%4 1EE7* pp. $+D?$/$


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environmental sustainability is under considerations. #mpirical work4 on

relationship4 is thin on the ground and such work would provide more

solid intellectual foundation to sustainable development. e do not knowenough to be able to say whether justice is or is not4 a necessary andHor a

sufficient condition for environmental sustainability.

It may be a necessary condition4 but only under certain

circumstances yet to be systemically explored4 and it is %rof. obson=s

feeling that it is unlikely to be a sufficient condition since sustainability

8uestions are about more than justice. In this context4 %rof. 0rain 0arry=s prediction that whatever redistribution among contemporaries is re8uired

by justice will also be observe the constraints that the interests of future

generations be protected= will be true if the goods redistributed are spent=

on sustainable practice.

Fi&!h The'i' : "ifth thesis concludes that no theory of justice can

henceforth be regarded as complete if it does not take into account the possibility of extending the community of justice beyond the realm of

present generation human beings.

- Idea of environmental sustainability ac8uires its greatest resonance

is the context of future generations.

- The environmental movement has also brought the non?human

natural world into the political frame.

In the light of aforesaid conclusions %rof. ndrew obson suggests

that in sum4 theories of justice should henceforth entertain an in?principle

triangular conception of the community of justice4 with present

generation humans4 future generation humans and non human natural

world at each of the vertices of a triangle. $/

$/ . obson4 ndrew4 op. cit .4 p. $+-


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Si1!h The'i' : )ixth thesis concludes that liberal theories of justice are

broadly compatible with the most common conception of environmental

sustainability.0. 5i'!$ri%al Per' e%!i(e $& !he En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e M$(emen!'

5nder this head we have made an effort to briefly present history

of the evolution and growth of the concept of environmental justice and

related environmental movements in 5) $F and India $7. ust three

decades ago4 the concept of environment justice had not registered on the

radar screens of environmental4 civil rights or social justice groups.

ccording to 'obert . 0ullard4 who is also considered as father of

environmental justice movement in 5) 4 in 5) a landmark garbage

dispute took place in ,ouston4 when frican merican homeowners in

1EFE began a bitter fight to keep a sanitary landfill out of their suburban

middle?income neighborhood. $E 'esidents formed the Bortheast

Community ction Group or B#C G. B#C G and their attorney4 3inda

!cKeever 0ullard4 filed a class action lawsuit to block the facility from

being built. The 1EFE lawsuit4 0ean v. southwestern aste management4

$F. "or historical perspective of #nvironment ustice in the merican context. )eegenerally4 0ullard4 'obert .4 9#nvironmental ustice in the $1st Century )ee generally4 Guha4'amchandra (ed.*4 ocial #cology 4 (Bew elhi : A5%4 1EE-* pp. D1?1+4 Guha4'amchandra and !artine@? lier4 oan4 4arieties of #n'ironmentalism (Bew elhi :A5% 1EE74 "irst Indian #dn.* pp. D&?$14 Guha4 'amchandra4 #n'ironmentalism 8 A3lobal $istory (Bew elhi : A5%4 $DDD* pp. E7?1$+> !artine@? lier4 oan4The

#n'ironmentalism of the !oor (Bew elhi : A5%4 $DD-4 "irst Indian #dn.* pp. 1$?1&.$E. This account of the history of environmental justice movement in 5) has beenmainly adopted from 0ullard4 'obert4 .4 op. cit .4 pp. D1?D$.
http://ejrc.cau.edu/ej%20in%20the%2021%20century.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_justicehttp://ejrc.cau.edu/ej%20in%20the%2021%20century.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_justice


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Inc.4 was the first of its kind to challenge the siting of a waste facility

under civil rights law.

It has been suggested that the idea of #nvironmental ustice was birthed during the struggle beginning in 1E7$ around the merican

arren County %C0 3andfill.The landmark ,ouston case occurred three

years before the environmental justice movement was catapulated into the

national limelight in the rural and mostly frican merican arren

County4 Borth Carolina. The environmental jutice movement has come a

long way since its humble beginning in arren County4 Borth Carolinawhere a %C0 landfill ignited protests and over -DD arrests. The arren

County protests provided the impetus for an 5.). General ccounting

office study4 itting of $a:ardous Waste %andfills and Their Correlation

1ith Racial and #conomic tatus of urrounding Communities . That

study revealed that three out of four of the off?site4 commercial ha@ardous

waste landfills in 'egion + (which comprises eight states in the south*happen to be located in predominantly frican? merican communities4

although frican? mericans made up only $DO of the region=s

population. !ore important4 the protesters put 9environmental racism< on

the map. "ifteen years later4 the state of Borth Carolina is re8uired to

spend over P$- million to cleanup and detoxify the arren County %C0

landfill.

The arren Country protests also led the Commission for 'acial

ustice to produce the first national study namely To;ic Waste and Race,

to correlate waste facility sites and demographic characteristics. 'ace was

found to be the most potent variable in predicting where these facilities

were located Q more powerful than poverty4 land values4 and home

ownership. In 1EED4 "umping in "i;ie 2 Race, Class, and #n'ironmental


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national health symposium* issued #xecutive Arder &D 1$7E74 9"ederal

ctions to ddress #nvironmental ustice in !inority %opulations and

3ow?Income %opulations


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subse8uently #% now has changed this analytical approach and has

moved closer to activists= approach. &$

En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e A%!i(i'!' De&ini!i$n $& !he En(ir$nmen!alJu'!i%e :

To activists4 environment justice is a much more holistic conceptthat include the right to a safe4 healthy4 productive and sustainableenvironment for all. In this context4 the 9environment< is considered toinclude the ecological4 physical4 social4 political4 aesthetic4 and economicenvironments. #nvironmental ustice thus refers to the conditions in

which such a right can be freely exercised4 whereby individual and groupidentities4 needs4 and dignities are preserved4 fulfilled4 and respected in away that provides for self actuali@ation and personal and communityempowerment. &&

%rof. )heila "oster has also analysed the controversy relating to thedefinition of environment justice. &+ )he says4 9though neither uniformlynor precisely defined4 environment justice is widely understood to beconcerned4 at the least4 with distributional and procedural e8uity inenvironmental and natural resource decisions. &- %rof. "oster also 8uotedthe broader definition advocated by the scholar cum environmental

justice activist 'ober . 0ullard4 who defines the environment justice asunder :

9Call for environment justice involve multifaceted claims4ultimately synthesi@ing aspirations for distributional and

procedural e8uality4 political accountability4 and social justiceinto an untidy theoretical framework. &/

&$. ang4 Tseming4 9!elding Civil 'ights nd #nvironmentalism : "inding#nvironmental ustice=s %lace in #nvironmental 'egulationual !rotection 2#n'ironmental Justice and Communities of Color 4 1EE+4 &4 at 1D?114 8uoted in "oster4 )heila4 op. cit. 4 note E at p. +/1.


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%articipants of Central and #astern #uropean orkshop on

#nvironmental ustice (0udapest4 ecember $DD&* defined

environmental justice (and injustice* in the following way&F

:En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e

condition of environmental justice exists when environmental

risks and ha@ards and investments and benefits are e8ually

distributed with a lack of discrimination4 whether direct or

indirect4 at any jurisdictional level> and when access to

environmental investments4 benefits4 and natural resources are

e8ually distributed> and when access to information4

participation in decision making4 and access to justice in

environment?related matters are enjoyed by all


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F. #nvironmental ustice demands the right to participate as e8ual

partners at every level of decision?making4 including needs

assessment4 planning4 implementation4 enforcement and evaluation.7. #nvironmental ustice affirms the right of all workers to a safe and

healthy work environment without being forced to choose between

an unsafe livelihood and unemployment. It also affirms the right of

those who work at home to be free from environmental ha@ards.

E. #nvironmental ustice protects the right of victims of

environmental injustice to receive full compensation and

reparations for damages as well as 8uality health care.

1D. #nvironmental ustice considers governmental acts of

environmental injustice a violation of international law4 the

5niversal eclaration An ,uman 'ights4 and the 5nited Bations

Convention on Genocide.

11. #nvironmental ustice must recogni@e a special legal and natural

relationship of Bative %eoples to the 5.). government through

treaties4 agreements4 compacts and covenants affirming sovereignty

and self?determination.

1$. #nvironmental ustice affirms the need for urban and rural

ecological policies to clean up and rebuild our cities and rural areas

in balance with nature4 honoring the cultural integrity of all our

communities4 and provided fair access for all to the full range of

resources.

1&. #nvironmental ustice calls for the strict enforcement of principles

of informed consent4 and a halt to the testing of experimental

reproductive and medical procedures and vaccinations on people of

color.


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1+. #nvironmental ustice opposes the destructive operations of multi?

national corporations.

1-. #nvironmental ustice opposes military occupation4 repression andexploitation of lands4 peoples and cultures4 and other life forms.

1/. #nvironmental ustice calls for the education of present and future

generations which emphasi@es social and environmental issues4

based on our experience and an appreciation of our diverse cultural

perspectives.

1F. #nvironmental ustice re8uires that we4 as individuals4 make

personal and consumer choices to consume as little of !other

#arth=s resources and to produce as little waste as possible> and

make the conscious decision to challenge and reprioriti@e our

lifestyles to ensure the health of the natural world for present and

future generations.

h$ al Ma'' Di'a'!er and En(ir$nmen!al Ju'!i%e

%rofessor .!. lier in his book4 The #n'ironmentalism of the

!oor 4 has also discussed the issues relating to 0hopal disaster as part of

the ongoing movement for environmental justice &E. The 0hopal tragedy

put many issues on the table. These are trends in the environmental

indicators of unsustainability> there are also surprises in the relation

between economy and environment. The 0hopal raises 8uestions: hat

are the values of human lives and in which metrics should they be

expressed; The 0hopal mass disaster links the environmental justice with

the value of human lives.

&E ee4 discussion under the head 9 %roclaimed bsconder


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The 0hopal disaster provides opportunity to understand few

important aspects of justice such as : ccess to justice4 istributive

ustice and #nvironmental ustice.0hopal disaster carries special meaning for India. It has been

proved a turning point for India=s environmental law and policy. In fact

the history of Indian environmental law and policy may be divided into

pre and post 0hopal period. The 0hopal disaster was the second most

important factor after the )tockholm Conference which has influenced

environmental law and policy in India. nalysis of pre 0hopal scenariosuggests that the 0hopal was bound to happen and law and administration

were not prepared to face challenges of 0hopal. The human conse8uences

of 0hopal disaster shook the Indian policy makers. It was reali@ed that

despite the existence of -D pieces of legislation &D of them on pollution

alone Q the country was not safe from environmental disasters. +D fter

0hopal4 India found herself unprepared and tragic experiences of 0hopal brought a new activism on part of executive4 legislature and judiciary.

This post 0hopal activism resulted into creation of a full fledged !inistry

of #nvironment and "orests (!o#"* in anuary 1E7-4 at the federal level

manned by a senior minister with the rank of cabinet minister. In order to

regulate ha@ardous industries and chemicals4 an umbrella legislation

having sweeping powers4 known as the #nvironment (%rotection* ct4

1E7/ was enacted. fter 0hopal the Indian government also framed two

comprehensive environment policies namely !olicy tatement for

Abatement of !ollution ("eb. 1EE$* and 5ational Conser'ation trategy

and !olicy tatement on #n'ironment and "e'elopment ( une 1EE$*. The

+D. A.%. wivedi4 India/s #n'ironmental !olicies, !rogrammes and te1ardship(3ondon4 !acmillan %ress 3td4 1EEF* p. 7E. This work of %rofessor wivedi has

been one of the most important analysis of India=s political4 economic and legal policies and programmes relating to environment.


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Indian judiciary led by the )upreme Court of India also started new era

of environmental justice.

The judicial handling of 0hopal litigation. 3egal issues of the0hopal have been as complex as the 0hopal crisis itself. The discipline of

law itself has been considered as technical4 difficult and complex. 0ut

complexity of the 0hopal legal issues constitutes a class in itself. 0hopal

legal issues relate4 firstly4 to Indian and 5.). legal regimes and secondly4

to international law. !any branches of law add their complexity in

0hopal. The legal mystery of 0hopal can not be understood unless weunderstand various dimensions of the issues such as :

%roblem of regulating the multinational corporations (!BCs*

under national and international law.

%roblem of proper judicial forum and application of doctrine of

forum non con'eniens by the 5.). Courts.

'egulation of ha@ardous industries4 chemicals and wastes.

%roblem to provide compensatory justice in a mass tort suit like

0hopal.

Constitutional validity of a legislation which makes Central

Government parens patriae of the victims totally excluding victims

to participate in their own case.

Constitutional validity of a settlement arrived between accused

!BC and Indian government without proper representation of the

victims.


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%roblems of a third world court to decide a complex mass tort suit

like 0hopal having no precedent on many legal issues relating to

liability and compensation. General professional incapacities on part of the judges4 lawyers and

other stake?holders of 0hopal litigation.

%roblem of delay both in civil and criminal litigations which

resulted very delayed compensation and other relief to the victims.

%roblem of enforcement of a decree against a !BC of a super power country like 5.). issued by a third world court of India.

%roblem of extradition of Chief #xecutive Afficer of a !BC from

5.). to India.

3egal aspects relating to distribution of settlement amount among

the five lakhs claimers.

3egal issues relating to medical treatment of the victims and its

administrations.

3egal issues relating to post disaster toxic contamination of

Carbide=s factory site at 0hopal which re8uired clean?up operation

and compensating the victims of contamination.

There was problem to access to environmental justice in 0hopallitigation. 6ictims= main problem was to search proper judicial forum.

This search led the victims to knock the door of the 5.). courts which

refused to entertain the victims= suit by applying the doctrine of forum

non con'eniens. This doctrine has potential to deny environmental justice

to the victims of 0hopal and similarly situated other victims in their

struggle against multinationals of the first world. The problem of access


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to environmental justice also relates to doctrine of parens patriae which

was used by the central government in India. The second problem of

access to environmental justice relates to violation of natural justice.The goal of criminal justice is achieved through criminal liability

litigation. The 0hopal disaster litigation has also raised the issues relating

to administration of justice in general and corporate crimes in particular.

The inade8uacy of the administration of criminal justice has not been able

to ensure corporate accountability in India. The criminal liability aspect

of 0hopal litigation has also demonstrated that the present internationallaw is also inade8uate and the soft= law norms have not only failed to

prevent corporate crimes but also have not been able to provide criminal

justice to the victims.

The principles of strict and absolute liability have generated

controversy during entire 0hopal litigation. The compensatory justice is

one of the important aspects of the justice. The objective of the civillitigation is to provide compensatory justice to the victims. The search for

compensatory justice compelled the Government of India to knock the

doors of the 5.). Courts. n ade8uate judicial forum is sine >ua non to

achieve the goal of compensatory justice. t the )upreme Court level

there have been attempts to provide compensatory justice. The )upreme

Court approved and justified the 0hopal settlement to secure the9immediate relief< to the victims. The 0hopal settlement order has been

proved as one of the most controversial and much critici@ed judicial

exercise. The )upreme Court in its Re'ie1 judgment conceded the

inade8uacy of the settlement exercise. Conse8uently it ordered for

medical group insurance for the future contingencies. The Court4 on

humanitarian ground4 asked the 5CC to construct a hospital for

speciali@ed treatment of the 0hopal victims.


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The problem of delay has played a decisive role in 0hopal disaster

litigation and it not only defeated the environmental justice but

practically killed it. uring litigation the delay factor was used as trumpcard by the 5CC. It filed large number of interlocutory applications and

filed appeals4 revisions4 and review petitions against the judicial orders

and maximi@ed the potential of delay.

The long history of complex 0hopal disaster litigation has exposed

the incapacity= of national and international legal order to provide

environmental justice to the victims of a manQmade industrial disaster.e may conclude this discussion by saying that the concept of

environmental justice should find recognition and acceptance both at

national and international levels and should be used to force the economy

into ecological adjustment and social justice.

concept of environmental justice by dr.s k gupta

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