European Commission proposal for a Soil Monitoring Law

The document analyzes the role of access to justice within the proposed Directive on Soil Monitoring and Resilience (Soil Monitoring Law). It argues that Article 22 is essential for holding public authorities accountable and ensuring compliance with the Aarhus Convention. The briefing recommends explicitly including human health organizations and prohibiting restrictive procedural standing rules to prevent obstacles to legal recourse.

• The proposed Soil Monitoring Law (SML) aims to "continuously improve soil health in the Union with the view to achieve healthy soils by 2050".
• Article 22 of the proposal allows the public to seek judicial review regarding the legality of soil health assessments, measures taken under the Directive, failures to act by competent authorities, and failures to meet public participation and information requirements.
• Access to justice is a legal requirement under the Aarhus Convention, Article 19(1) of the Treaty on European Union, and Article 47 of the Charter of the Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
• To improve Article 22, the briefing recommends explicitly including non-governmental organizations that promote the protection of human health and banning procedural standing rules, such as material preclusion or requirements for prior participation in decision-making, which can obstruct access to justice.
• The effectiveness of access to justice depends on a robust governance framework that includes mandatory soil district management plans and legally-binding targets.

APA

ClientEarth (2023). European Commission proposal for a Soil Monitoring Law. https://www.clientearth.org/media/0z5frye2/soil-monitoring-law-proposal-technical-briefing-on-the-importance-of-access-to-justice.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. European Commission proposal for a Soil Monitoring Law. 2023. https://www.clientearth.org/media/0z5frye2/soil-monitoring-law-proposal-technical-briefing-on-the-importance-of-access-to-justice.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=European Commission proposal for a Soil Monitoring Law |date=October 2023 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/0z5frye2/soil-monitoring-law-proposal-technical-briefing-on-the-importance-of-access-to-justice.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2023european, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{European Commission proposal for a Soil Monitoring Law}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/0z5frye2/soil-monitoring-law-proposal-technical-briefing-on-the-importance-of-access-to-justice.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }