Summary
In 2023, Colectivo Río Alambí, a civil society organization, filed a protective action against Ecuador’s Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Renewable Energy and Electricity, and the public company Hidroequinoccio EP over the authorization of a hydroelectric project (La Maravilla) within the Chocó Andino protected area where the Alambí River is located. The plaintiffs argued that the project violated the constitutional rights of nature, the right to a healthy environment, the right to environmental consultation, and claimed they were not informed or consulted in an appropriate and timely manner about the environmental and social impacts of the hydroelectric project.
The Alambí River is located north-west of the capital city of Quito, in Ecuador’s Andean Chocó region. The Chocó Andino is a high biodiversity ecosystem, which UNESCO declared to be a biosphere reserve in 2018. This ecosystem is home to more than 140 species of amphibians, more than 270 species of mammals, 3200 species of plants (76 of which are in danger of extinction), and more than 320 archaeological sites of pre-Columbian cultures.
Despite being located in a biosphere reserve, the Ministry of Environment had categorized the hydroelectric plant as having a low environmental impact. The Ministry of Renewable Energy and Electricity stated they had a 2018 operating authorization enabling them to carry out activities, and the company Hidroequinoccio EP claimed that this small hydroelectric plant would not affect the river flow.
Legal Ruling
On October 13, 2023, the Judicial Unit for Family, Women, Children, and Adolescents based in the Metropolitan District of Quito ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and recognized the Alambí River as a subject of rights. The Judge annulled the water use permit authorized to Hidroequinoccio EP, and recognized the violation of several constitutional rights, including the rights of nature, the human right to a healthy environment, and the right to environmental consultation.
The Judge, Norma Noemí Medrano, stated that the state must promote and guarantee the rights of people and nature, especially when there is a threat of species extinction, destruction of ecosystems, or permanent alteration of natural cycles. The Judge referred to the precautionary principle and explained that it is the state’s duty to prevent environmental harm rather than remediating it.
Related Initiatives
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Alex Putzer, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2025. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor.https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/ecuador-court-case-on-rights-of-nature-of-the-alambi-river/.
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