Legal Grounds for Colombian Environmental Policy

Abstract

In the context of modernity, environmental issues are unavoidable in the construction of a state, as they are vitally important to the community and encompass social, cultural, economic, and institutional aspects; they must therefore be taken into account when drafting a new Constitution, a society's highest law. This was established by the framers of the 1991 Constitution when they recognized the Colombian people's right to enjoy a healthy environment. To this end, the National Environmental System was created, made up of the Ministry of Environment, regional autonomous corporations, and territorial entities. Both the 1991 Constitution and Law 99 of 1993, backed by Constitutional Court rulings, provide the legal basis for the coordinated implementation of national environmental policy across different state authorities and their respective levels and jurisdictions, with the general purpose of ensuring the sustainable development of natural resources and guaranteeing the community's right to a life in harmony with nature.