Panama Supreme Court Case: Sierra Llorona Nature Reserve

Summary

On June 17, 2024, Panama’s Supreme Court suspended the Caribbean Corridor road project through the Sierra Llorona Nature Reserve, citing RoN violations and invoking the precautionary principle to prevent significant environmental damage. The lawsuit was filed by attorney Susana Serracín against Panama’s Ministry of Environment, seeking to annul the Ministry’s resolution approving the environmental impact study for the road. The lawsuit highlighted serious flaws in the approval process and potential risks to biodiversity, particularly in areas near nature reserves. Environmental groups raised concerns about the destruction of mature secondary forests and the proximity of the project to ecologically sensitive zones. The plaintiff accused the Ministry of Environment of violating Panama’s national rights of nature law (Law 287) by neglecting the State’s “duty to ensure the application of all administrative, legal and/or technical measures…necessary to prevent and restrict the effects of human activities that may contribute to the extinction of species, the destruction of ecosystems or the permanent alteration of natural cycles and the climate …” The Court agreed and suspended the road project, enforcing rights of nature principles like the precautionary principle enshrined in Panama’s national rights of nature law.

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