Constitutional protection of the Ichu river: environmental case law and public management in Huancavelica
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55873/730hhf20Keywords:
environmental law, water governance, constitutional jurisprudence, environmental protection, sanitationAbstract
Pollution in the Ichu River reveals a gap between the constitutional recognition of the right to a balanced environment and its implementation. The study analyzed Peruvian constitutional jurisprudence on environmental protection and its scope regarding the situation of the Ichu River in Huancavelica. A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, and descriptive study was conducted, complemented by a legal-documentary analysis of five Constitutional Court rulings and a questionnaire administered to 23 judges in 2017. The results showed that environmental law encompasses the enjoyment of an environment, the duty to preserve it, and State obligations under the principles of prevention and precaution. The judges showed an unfavorable perception, with negative responses of 95.7%, 91.3%, and 87.0%. In addition, nine untreated wastewater discharge points were identified. It is concluded that the effectiveness of the constitutional framework requires strengthening institutional coordination, sanitation infrastructure, environmental monitoring, and compliance mechanisms.
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