The environment and its infrastructure as a fundamental right: a study of ADPF 760

Abstract

This article analyzes the protection of the environment and its infrastructure as a fundamental right within the Brazilian legal system through a case study of the “Arguição de Descumprimento de Preceito Fundamental (ADPF) No. 760”. Although environmental protection is not expressly included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 1988 Brazilian Constitution enshrined it as a fundamental right in Article 225, imposing positive duties on the State and allowing judicial review of state omissions. In this context, the article examines the 2024 decision of the Supreme Federal Court, which recognized structural failures in the policy to combat deforestation in the Legal Amazon, rejected the declaration of an unconstitutional situation, and adopted the technique of “meaningful engagement.” The article demonstrates how ADPF 760 consolidates a model of environmental judicial protection that combines constitutional enforcement, institutional monitoring, and respect for the limits of the separation of powers, thereby contributing to the effectiveness of environmental fundamental rights.