Let’s say I was angry about the way Georgia was treating its voters, and I wanted to sue the state on their behalf. The courts would throw out my suit because I didn’t have “standing.” Since the law didn’t affect me, I wouldn’t have a legal right to sue.
In the November 2020 election the voters of Orange County, Florida, voted to amend their county charter to grant rights to the Econlockhatchee and Wekiva Rivers. The Right to Clean Water Charter Amendment declared that “all Citizens of Orange County have a right to clean water.” lt also declared that the county’s waterways have a “right to exist, flow, to be protected against pollution, and to maintain a healthy ecosystem.”\
In other words, the rivers of Orange County now have “standing” in the legal system.
If the U.S. Supreme Court can declare that corporations are “people” for legal purposes, why can’t rivers have the same rights?
Information for this post is from Rebecca Renner, “Rights for a River,” Sierra, (March-April 2021), pp. 18-19.
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