Mar Menor, Europe's largest saltwater lagoon, has been granted legal personhood rights in a bid to protect it from environmental collapse. The lagoon, located in southeastern Spain, has suffered from algal blooms, mass fish and crustacean die-offs, and a decline in water quality due to intensive agriculture and development in the surrounding area.
Teresa Vicente, a professor of philosophy of law, launched a campaign to grant Mar Menor rights of nature, which would give it the right to exist and be defended from further damage. After collecting over 600,000 signatures and gaining support from local communities, the Spanish senate approved the bill in 2022.
Mar Menor is now the first ecosystem in Europe to be given legal personhood rights, following in the footsteps of other ecosystems such as the Atrato River in Colombia and New Zealand's Whanganui River. This legal strategy, which empowers citizens to act on behalf of nature, has been recognized as an important precedent for democratizing environmental protection and expanding the role of civil society in support of environmental campaigns.
Vicente, who was born and raised in the region, remembers the lagoon from her childhood and has seen the devastating impact of human activities on the environment. She believes that granting legal personhood rights to Mar Menor will help to "cut the poison" of intensive agriculture and defend it from further harm.
The new legislation gives Mar Menor the right to conservation, protection, and remediation of environmental damage. Three new legislative bodies, composed of government representatives, scientists, and local citizens, have been appointed to oversee enforcement, and any citizen can now file a lawsuit on behalf of Mar Menor.
While the lagoon has not miraculously recovered, Vicente is confident that the new model for justice will help to restore the area over time. She believes that nature-based solutions can help to revive the lagoon, and that it will have a "life of dignity" once again.
The campaign to grant Mar Menor legal personhood rights has sparked a wider conversation about the need to protect the environment and the role of citizens in defending nature. Vicente's work has been recognized with the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, which honors grassroots environmental leaders around the world.
The story of Mar Menor serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting our natural environments and the need for innovative solutions to address the environmental challenges we face. By granting legal personhood rights to ecosystems like Mar Menor, we can work towards a more sustainable future and ensure that nature has a voice in the decisions that affect it.
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