Oregon Coalition for an Environmental Rights Amendment
The People's Right to a Healthy Environment
Everyone has the right to a healthy environment. Everyone needs clean air, clean water, and a stable climate to survive and thrive. OCERA is a nonpartisan, grassroots effort dedicated to securing this fundamental right for all, in the highest law of the land, the Oregon Constitution.
The Amendment Text
Oregon Constitution, Article I (Bill of Rights), Section 48. Right to a clean, safe, and healthy environment.
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All people, including children and future generations, have the inherent fundamental right to a clean, safe, and healthy environment, including but not limited to clean air, clean water, thriving ecosystems, and a stable climate system. This right shall not be abridged unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the means least restrictive of the right.
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All of Oregon’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come. As trustee of these resources with affirmative fiduciary obligations, the State shall conserve and maintain them against substantial impairment for the benefit of all people.
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Any person may obtain declaratory or equitable relief against state action or inaction allowing harm or the threat of harm to public safety or health to enforce the rights and duties guaranteed under this section. Prevailing parties securing protection of rights or enforcement of duties under this section shall be entitled to costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney and expert witness fees. The rights and duties guaranteed herein are self-executing and enforceable upon enactment, without implementing legislation or exhaustion of other remedies.
Why Do We Need This?
You might think that our constitutional rights to life and liberty include natural life support systems -- that a right to a clean and healthy environment is an implied, enforceable right (and it should be). Unfortunately, case law has made it clear that if it's not expressly stated, there's no guarantee it will be recognized. So, to make our expectations clear, to restore a responsible, sustainable balance between competing interests, we need certain language in the Oregon Constitution to clearly expect and enforce our fundamental right to a healthy environment.
How You Can Help
Interested in supporting OCERA with our effort to get a right to a safe climate enshrined on the Oregon constitution? There are several different ways that you can help support our work. Whether you have skills and time that you would like to lend, or if you have thoughts on amendment language, or if you just want to follow along with news and developments there are several ways to contribute.
