Environmental Law or Environmental Protection Law? A Comparative Legal Analysis

Abstract

The problem of environmental law and environmental protection law is not only a terminology issue. Using either of the two terms, the lawmaker reveals its vision of regulating environmental issues in the system of law. In environmental protection law the protective nature of a legal norm is emphasized, and at the same time the control and supervisory powers of public administration authorities are increased. In the case of environmental protection law the confrontation element is in the foreground and the lawmaker immediately advocates the environment. On the other hand, in the case of environmental law the predominant element is conciliation, that is, the reconciliation of conflicting values. The role of the authorities is not limited to control and supervision, but rather they should resolve conflicts between different values. Although the system of Polish law traditionally uses the name “environmental protection law” in the language of law and the language of lawyers, the predominant elements are characteristic of environmental law – conciliation elements with the principle of sustainable development at the forefront. Therefore, the name of this area of normative regulations should be reviewed and environmental protection law should be renamed “environmental law”.