The Environmental Perspective of the Right to Water in the Case Law of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Abstract

This article aims at understanding the environmental perspective of the human right to water in the case law of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR). The paper firstly introduces the human right to water in general international law. Secondly, it examines the constructions implemented in the jurisprudence of the IACtHR. Thereafter, it goes on to discuss the Advisory Opinion n 23/17 innovations regarding human rights water in environmental perspective. Finally, the repercussion of this decision is presented in the context of the recent jurisprudence of the IACtHR, which recognizes the interconnection of the promotion of the human right to water and the protection of water resources. The article argues that, despite the jurisdictional challenges to the human right to water in the IACtHR, the integration of the protection of the environment and the human right to water provides a new normative perspective in domestic and international human rights law for the protection and utilization of water resources.