Summary
In 2022, a network of citizens collaborating in the Maas Cleanup Campaign launched a petition to recognize the Maas River as a subject with rights. The petition is to recognize the Maas/Meuse River as possessing the fundamental rights: (1) to flow; (2) to perform the essential ecological functions in its ecosystem, including providing healthy housing for fish, amphibians, aquatic plants and other river life; (3) to be free from pollution; (4) to feed and be fed by a healthy underground aquifer; (5) to native biodiversity; (6) to restoration.
It is currently an advocacy and petition campaign rather than a formally debated government bill. Organizers are collecting 50,000 signatures until the next Meuse Cleanup Day on September 18. After that, they will present the petition to the Tweede Kamer (Dutch House of Representatives) to officially place the topic on the political agenda. Citizens are asking members to investigate how to use current legislation and regulations to establish the fundamental rights of the Maas River.
Suggested Citation:
Kauffman, Craig, Catherine Haas, Shrishtee Bajpai, Kelsey Leonard, Elizabeth Macpherson, Pamela Martin, Alessandro Pelizzon, Alex Putzer & Linda Sheehan. Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. V2. 2026. Distributed by the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor. https://ecojurisprudence.org/initiatives/netherlands-petition-to-recognize-rights-of-maas-river-2/.
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