The Environmental Case Law Index is a collection of judgments from 10 African countries on topics relating to environmental law, both substantive and procedural. The collection focuses on cases where an environmental interest interacts with governmental or private interests.
Get started on finding judgments that are relevant to you by browsing the topic list on the left of the screen. Click the arrows next to the topic names to reveal a detailed list of sub-topics. Most judgments are accompanied by a short summary written by subject-area expert postgraduate students from the University of Cape Town.
Read also JIFA's Environmental Country Reports for SADC
Hlasa v Patsi (CIV/A/32/2013) [2014] LSHC 62 (11 May 2014); 
EL Index Locus standi in environmental litigation Litigation of environmental issues Environmental law Plants, forests and forestry (flora) Flora and fauna Environmental law Constitutional Interpretation Constitutional Law
Water Resources Management Authority v Kensalt Limited [2014] eKLR (Elc Civil Case 28 of 2013); (17 October 2014); Attribution of Costs Costs Civil Remedies Constitutional Interpretation Constitutional Law Locus standi in environmental litigation Litigation of environmental issues Environmental law Use of coastal and marine areas Water and coasts Environmental law Healthy environment Substantive rights Human Rights EL IndexThe plaintiff was claiming outstanding water use charges together with interest from the defendant.
The court determined if sea water can be owned or managed, and if so by which statutory body. The court held that art 260 of the Constitution defined land to include marine waters in the territorial sea and thus disagreed with the defendant’s argument that sea water is not capable of ownership. It was further held that the National Land Commission was the only body empowered to administer and manage the territorial sea, the exclusive economic zone and the sea bed on behalf of the people of Kenya.
The court noted that the Water Act and the Water Resources Management Rules lacked specific provisions that included sea water as a water resource for the purpose of levying charges for the use of sea water. It was therefore held that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi to levy charges for use of sea water.
Accordingly, the case was struck out with costs to the plaintiff.
Funzi Island Development Limited & 2 others v County Council of Kwale & 2 others [2014] eKLR (Civil Appeal 252 of 2005); (27 February 2014); Judicial Review Appeals and reviews Civil Procedure Public interest in environment Environmental decision-making Environmental law Land use Human exploitation of the environment Environmental law Locus standi in environmental litigation Litigation of environmental issues Environmental law EL IndexThe appellants appealed against the decision of the High Court to dismiss an application for judicial review. The appellants sought orders of certiorari and prohibition against the County council to set apart a portion of land for the purposes of a boat landing base and the subsequent granting of a lease to the third respondents. The court had to consider several issues including: whether judicial review was the proper avenue for nullifying a title which was granted by law; whether a person other than the ministry in charge of forest could challenge an allocation of land; and what the correct status of the land in question was.
The court observed that the remedy of judicial review under Kenyan law was not wide enough to accommodate a party who was not just aggrieved by the process but sought to ventilate other issues. The court however concluded that there was no material dispute of fact, and the case could be decided on the papers. The court held that the Commissioner of lands had no power to grant more land than what the statute empowered him to do and that he had no power to set aside public land. On the locus standi of the appellants, the court held that the land which was allocated was a beach in front of the appellants’ pieces of land which tourists and local villagers used. There was therefore substantial interest by the appellants in the matter.
Accordingly, the appeal was allowed and the order of the High court dismissing the appellants’ notice of motion was set aside.
Kangwa and Others v Zambia Environmental Management Agency and Others (Appeal No. 40/2012) [2014] ZMSC 143 (30 October 2014); EL Index Locus standi in environmental litigation Litigation of environmental issues Environmental law Environmental impact and risk assessment Environmental decision-making Environmental law Land use Human exploitation of the environment Environmental law Supervisory Jurisdiction Jurisdiction Civil Procedure |
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