The Department of Environment has welcomed the decision by the United Nations declaring access to a clean and healthy environment a universal human right.

Director Environment Sandeep Singh said the ministry was exhilarated and welcomes the declaration by the United Nations General Assembly.

The resolution, based on a similar text adopted last year by the Human Rights Council, calls upon States, international organizations, and business enterprises to scale up efforts to ensure a healthy environment for all.

The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, welcomed the ‘historic’ decision and said the landmark development demonstrates that Member States can come together in the collective fight against the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.

Ms Singh said that the declaration further aligned to the work undertaken by the ministry in areas of Pollution Control, environmental loss and damage, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development through the existing legislative frameworks.

She said it also includes the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) processes and the application of the precautionary principle to ensure that Fijians continue to have access to a clean and healthy environment.

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