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Nottingham U.S. Freedom from Chemical Trespass Rights-based Ordinance

United States of America
Nottingham, New Hampshire
Overturned in 2021
Local law
Rights Of Nature
Ecosystems and natural communities
All Nature
CELDF and residents
Civil Society, NGO

Summary

Nottingham, New Hampshire’s Freedom from Chemical Trespass Ordinance was adopted in March of 2019 by a vote of the townspeople at a town meeting. At that time, the organization Nottingham Water Alliance had been working on community education, community organizing and signature gathering for a year (with help and guidance from CELDF), The ordinance gives townspeople the right to self-government,a healthy climate, clean air, water, and soil; and it gives ecosystems, the right “to naturally exist, flourish, regenerate, evolve, and be restored”. The ordinance also seeks to limit judicial challenges to the ordinance and subjects any business entity or government that willfully interferes with these rights to a $1,000 per day fine. Local business operators filed suit to challenge the ordinance’s validity. On February 7, 2021, the court overturned the ordinance, deciding that it exceeded the town’s authority under state law; it was unconstitutionally vague; it was preempted by state laws regulating various potentially environmentally destructive practices/substances; and violated the First Amendment and the Separation of Powers Doctrine by attempting to prohibit challenges to the ordinance and by providing that if “a court fails to uphold [the ordinance] or purports to declare it unlawful, the ordinance shall not be affected.”

To see the original legal document(s) for this initiative, click the links below:

Nottingham Freedom from Chemical Trespass Ordinance [PDF]

To see other supplementary information related to this initiative, click the links below:

Article summarizing case
Unionleader - Judge finds Nottingham's 'chemical trespass' ordinance unconstitutional

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