ACTCOSS has made a submission to the Right to a Healthy Environment consultation process. ACTCOSS is proud of the ACT’s commitment to a be a human rights jurisdiction, and we support the addition of a right to a healthy environment (RHE) to the ‘Economic, Social and Cultural rights’ (ESC) section of the ACT Human Rights Act 2004. ACTCOSS believes the Act should be amended to explicitly include all ESC rights, including the right to housing, physical and mental health, and culture.
We agree with the proposal to include the right to a healthy environment in the ACT, however, we would like to see a more comprehensive approach to secure ASC rights across the board in the ACT.