At a ministerial meeting in Luxembourg on 14 May, the 46-member body — which oversees human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe — introduced the Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law. It sets new legal standards for prosecuting severe environmental offences, including those with cross-border impacts.

However, campaigners and legal experts say the Council fell short by not formally recognising the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.

A breakthrough on environmental crime

The new treaty was developed over two years with input from legal and environmental experts, EU bodies, UN agencies, INTERPOL, and civil society. It outlines and criminalises a wide range of environmental offences, including those comparable to ecocide — the destruction of ecosystems on a large scale.

"This Convention is a game-changer," said Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe. "It responds directly to today's ecological threats and uses criminal justice tools to protect the planet. It also forms part of our broader environmental strategy, which connects climate action to human rights, democracy and the rule of law."

A missed opportunity on environmental rights

The Convention is accompanied by a new long-term environmental strategy, with goals to:

• Align environmental and human rights policies

• Strengthen democratic participation in environmental decisions

• Support environmental defenders and whistleblowers

• Increase prosecutions for eco-crimes

• Protect biodiversity and natural landscapes

Still, environmental law specialists argue the Council fell short by not declaring the right to a healthy environment as a fundamental human right under European law.

"This is 2025. It's unacceptable that Europe still doesn't legally recognise this right," said Sebastien Duyck, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL).

Europe stands alone

Europe remains the only continent without legal recognition of the right to a healthy environment in its regional human rights framework. Despite growing threats from pollution, climate breakdown and biodiversity loss, and calls from European lawmakers and civil society, states failed to act.

According to Duyck, opposition from Switzerland and Norway blocked any progress on the issue during negotiations. Yet some countries, including France, Slovenia, and Portugal, have taken the lead in pushing for change.

"Europe should be leading the world on human rights, not lagging behind," Duyck said. "This right isn't abstract — it's about protecting real people from real harm. And until that's done, civil society won't let up."

He urged the Council of Europe to begin drafting a new protocol under the European Convention on Human Rights that would establish the right to a healthy environment as a legally protected standard.