WITF-TV in Harrisburg will air a new documentary on October 25 at 8:00 p.m. called Generations Yet To Come: Environmental Rights In Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania is one of only a few states to recognize environmental quality as a basic civil right-- much like the U.S. Constitution protects the right to free speech and freedom of religion.

Article 1, Section 27, known as the Environmental Rights Amendment, was added to Pennsylvania’s constitution in 1971, but its powerful language was ignored for decades. That’s starting to change.

In recent years, state Supreme Court decisions are giving it renewed life. People who once felt bulldozed by energy companies now have a powerful new way to fight back, according to WITF.

This has sparked fresh interest, among environmental advocates, in the concept of “environmental constitutionalism”-- the idea that getting similar provisions amended into other state constitutions, or the federal constitution, could be the key to reshaping not only policy, but public opinion about how humans relate to the natural world.

The documentary will feature former Sen. Franklin Kury, the author of the Environmental Rights Amendment, and others involved in this issue.

The program will also be available for viewing online at a later date.

(Photo: Sen. Kury.)

Environmental Rights Amendment Case Stories:

PA Supreme Court Rules Act 13 Drilling Law Municipal Preemption Unconstitutional

PA Supreme Court Declares Law Diverting Oil & Gas Lease Funds To General Fund Unconstitutional

Related Story:

Now Online: WQED Downstream Documentary Looks At Pollution In Pennsylvania’s Waterways

NewsClip:

WITF Smart Talk 10th Anniversary: The Environment, What’s Changed In 10 Years

[Posted: Oct. 11, 2018]

10/15/2018