Greening Environmental Rights: Separating Law and Morality in Environmental Public Interest Litigation in Pakistan

摘要

Many environmentalists consider active environmental litigation in developing countries to be a positive development. However, in Pakistan, a country that encourages public interest litigation, this system poses serious institutional and legal problems that may hinder the development of an effective national response to environmental challenges. Those litigating for environmental protection in Pakistan may be relying too heavily on the courts to take measures that should be within the jurisdiction of the Pakistan EPA. In this Article, Dominic J. Nardi Jr. warns that judicial activism might lead to conflicts with the executive, or could encourage environmental regulators to spurn responsibility for handling future environmental problems. He recommends that the judiciary relegate public interest cases based on statutes to the country's Environmental Tribunals, since they presumably have the expertise necessary to adjudicate these types of cases. For public interest cases relying on fundamental rights or morality, the Federal Shariat Court may be the best venue for equitable relief.