Right to life: the eco-test finally passed: A commentary on the Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights of January 30, 2025 in the case of Cannavacciuolo and Others v. Italy (applications nos.51567/14, 39742/14, 74208/14, 21215/15)

The case in question concerns systematic and long-term environmental pollution in the Campania region of Italy, known as “Terra dei Fuochi” (“Land of Fires”), where illegal dumping and burning of hazardous waste has taken place for decades, leading to serious health consequences for the local population. The judgment in Cannavacciuolo and Others v. Italy, delivered by the European Court of Human Rights on 30 January 2025, represents an important precedent for the development of environmental human rights. It is the first judgment linking a violation of the right to life to long-term exposure to pollutants emitted into the environment. The decisive element for the applicability of the right to life was the change in the Court’s approach to the requirement of causation that gives rise to a violation of Article 2. Moreover, this is the Court’s first pilot-judgment procedure in an environmental case, which provides for the adoption by Italy of a whole range of measures to improve the state of the environment in Campania. The judgment in Cannavacciuolo and Others v. Italy should therefore be seen as a turning point for environmental justice.