Access to Rights – Rights to Resources: A Cross-cutting Campaign for Environmental, Economic and Social Rights - Environmental Justice

Since its establishment in 1991, Green Line has been striving to address the increasing and severe environmental degradation of the Lebanese environment and has been working on most environmental issues (degradation of forests, dumping or burning of solid waste, water supply, sea/air/groundwater pollution, real estate speculation and unplanned construction, absence of sustainable public transport, liberalization of agriculture, dependency on fossil fuel use by 97%, absence of national energy policy and adequate renewable energy legislation etc).

Green Line has also addressed sensitive issues such as the privatization of public spaces and environmental sites such as the coast and green spaces in cities. The achievement of some improvements however have often been obstructed by the absence of political will to implement existing legislation or changes, and sabotaged by individuals with good political relations, corruption among the political and private sector elites, and a common neglect of the public interest and public concerns when it comes to the conservation of natural resources and livelihoods that are key to sustainable development.In 2010, Green Line intends to follow up to the campaign on “Right to Resources - Access to Rights” initiated in 2009, and aiming at: 

• Creating a public and media dynamic concerned with the major environmental issues from a rights-based perspective
• Familiarizing citizens with their rights to clean and easily accessible resources and to a healthy environment (i.e. clean air, clean water, environmentally sound and reliable energy sources, green areas, free access to unpolluted maritime domains, proper waste management etc…)
• Lobbying for the implementation of existing laws and the development of new ones relevant to the sustainable use of resources and to allow public access to these resources.

Fact Sheets:

• Green Spaces
• Maritime Properties
• Renewable Energy
• Cedar Island