points of claim

OIKOS Red Ambiental v. Mendoza Province - points of claim

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OIKOS Red Ambiental v. Mendoza Province - Other

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On April 9, 2018, OIKOS Red Ambiental (an ENGO) filed a claim challenging the constitutionality of Decree Nº 248/2018 of the Provincial Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure and Energy, which regulates the procedure of authorization of fracking activities. Among other arguments, the plaintiff alleged irregularities in the process through which the Decree was enacted (failure to take into consideration public participation) and that the Decree would allow, as part of the consented fracking activities, excessive and illegal consumption of water, which is a scarce and specially protected resource in the Province. Furthermore, the plaintiff warned about the potential use of products with radioactive content in the fracking operations and the underestimation of risks related to volcanoes located in the Province. Different legal grounds are used by OIKOS, including the constitutional right to a healthy environment (Article 41 of the National Constitution), the General Law of the Environment (Act 25.675), the Hazardous Waste National Act (Act 24.051), environmental principles (progressivity, prevention, precaution, intergenerational equity), the Mendoza Constitution and the provincial environmental act (Act 5691). Climate change is only a passing reference in the lawsuit, which merely mentioned the UNFCCC to refer to the precautionary principle. 
Concerns and arguments related to the climate impact of fracking activities were brought in the case through three amicus curiae filed by the Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN, December 2020), EarthJustice (January 2021) and the International Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA, February 2021). In these submissions, among other concerns, the ENGOs highlighted the climate impacts of fossil fuel production (both CO2 emissions of future combustion and CH4 leaks) and alleged that those impacts were not duly considered when making the decision (cost-benefit analysis) and that they could imply a breach in Argentina’s international commitments. AIDA’s submission also observed that, in October 2018, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recommended Argentina to reconsider the exploitation of Vaca Muerta’s oil and gas reserves in light of the climate commitments under the Paris Agreement and the scarcity of the global carbon budget. 

In 2023, the Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS), the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL); and the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW USA) also presented amici curiae.

On August 26, 2024, the Mendoza Supreme Court accepted the amicus brief submitted by Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (FARN, December 2020) and rejected the rest of them. The Court considered that the rejected amici curiae were not contributions of legal or substantive value for the case at stake. 

OIKOS Red Ambiental v. Mendoza Province

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Any compulsory, unrequited payment to the government levied on corporations or individuals. This can be for environmental reasons, such as introducing a Carbon tax to set a price that emitters must pay for the greenhouse gases they emit.

Terrestrial means "of the earth" and relates to the risks to ecological system that includes all living organisms and their interactions within land-based environments, such as forests, grasslands, and deserts.

Social and cultural groups that share collective ancestral ties to the lands and natural resources where they live, occupy or from which they have been displaced

Tradable permits are market-based tools that grant permission for specific activities, frequently used to regulate emissions. These permits can be issued within a trading system to manage environmental impacts.

People with different national or cultural traditions from the dominant population

Actions or measures to adapt terrestrial systems to climate change.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

Using laws and the legal system more broadly to protect vulnerable entities

A drought is an extended period of unusually dry weather marked by a significant and sustained lack of precipitation, falling below a specific threshold over a large area for more than a month

Activities involving the catching, processing, and selling of fish for food, recreation, and industry.

The activities of industries that transforms raw materials into finished goods through industrial processes.

Actions to adapt human health, healthcare systems and well-being to climate change.

The activities of industries involved in the production, distribution, and sale of energy, including electricity, gas, and renewables.

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

Activities of industries that extract natural resources, such as mining, oil, and gas, for commercial use.

Financial support to help individuals manage the effects of unexpected events, securing their livelihoods and increasing the resilience of people and businesses to the changing climate. It’s especially vital in developing regions where everyday risks, climate-related weather extremes, or crop failures can push people into poverty. Without insurance, people may have to resort to selling assets or cutting consumption to cope with losses.

Oil is a combustible liquid fossil fuel composed mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring as crude oil and refined into petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and kerosene.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

This sector involves managing waste treatment, sanitation, pollution control and environmental cleanup.

Actions to adapt and increase the resilience of rural and urban infrastructure and settlements to climate change.

Any substance with chemical properties that can cause physical harm to people or damage the environment, including ammonia, carbon monoxide, phosphine, chlorine, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, pesticides, dioxins, microplastics, benzene, asbestos, aflatoxins, fluoride, methanol, and toxins from marine sources.

Climate change can have a range of impacts on technological system. Extreme weather events can cause infrastructure failures like power outages or damage to roads and bridges, as well as the impacts from waste following natural disasters. Human activities also cause technological impacts, such as the risks posed by oil spillage and leaks.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Electrical energy generated from mechanical devices driven by flowing fresh water.

Social protection systems consist of policies that help people manage social risks in order to prevent poverty and maintain decent incomes and living standards

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

This sector involves the distribution, treatment, and conservation of water resources.

A company that is owned wholly or partially by the state, typically operating in key sectors.

Climate change impacts our society by disrupting the natural, economic and social systems we depend on. Physical hazards and underlying vulnerabilities can lead to increased resource competition for food and water, which can heighten the risk of conflict.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

Jobs that contribute to preserving or restoring the environment. We include jobs which require a high amount of green skills or which spend much of their time on green activities, as well as jobs transforming polluting industries.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Codes and standards are regulatory instruments that specify minimum standards to protect health and safety. This ranges from performance standards, which prescribe outcomes while allowing flexibility to achieve compliance, to the more prescriptive approach of technology-specific standards.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

The processes through which enterprises can identify, prevent, mitigate and account for how they address their actual and potential adverse impacts. Due diligence is the idea that reasonable precautions should be taken to avoid causing harm to people, the environment, or society. It also involves identifying and mitigating risks before they occur.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Geohazards are adverse geological phenomenon's that are capable of causing widespread damage or loss to property, life and the environment, such as earthquakes, volcano eruptions and tsunamis. Climate change can increase the frequency and severity of some geohazards, such as landslides, and soil erosion.

Fossil gas, commonly known as natural gas, is a fossil fuel consisting chiefly of methane with smaller amounts of other hydrocarbons and trace gases, found in underground deposits.

OIKOS Red Ambiental v. Mendoza Province - points of claim

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Just transition

Renewable energy

Fossil fuel

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance