Argentina

AuthorAngeles Murgier and Guillermo Malm Green
Pages397-420
CHAPTER 21
Argentina
ANGELES MURGIER AND GUILLERMO MALM GREEN
I. Introduction
Argentina is a federal, institutional democracy, with a constitution based
on that of the United States. As a federal republic, Argentina is composed
of provinces and one autonomous city, the City of Buenos Aires, where the
federal government has its offices. Provinces retain all powers that have
not been delegated to the federal government in conformity with the
constitution.1
The Argentine Constitution, as amended in 1994, recognizes the right to
a healthy, balanced environment; the principle of sustainable development;
the “polluter pays” principle, whereby environmental damage generates the
obligation to “restore”; the right to information; and a ban on the entry into
the country of hazardous waste.2
Because the power to protect the environment basically falls within the
police power, according to the federal structure of the constitution, such
power is vested in the provinces, and only by delegation, in the federal gov-
ernment. Nevertheless, the federal government is vested with the power to
legislate the minimum standards to be met throughout the country.3 As a
result, local laws enacted by the provinces and applicable in their own juris-
diction coexist with federal laws that apply to the whole country.
Regarding agencies with environmental jurisdiction, the national envi-
ronmental agency is the Secretariat of Environment and Sustainable Devel-
opment (Secretaría de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sustentable, SAyDS). SAyDS is
subordinate to the Office of the Chief of Staff to the Argentine President.4
Other national agencies that regulate environmental issues are the Secretariat
of Energy (Secretaría de Energía) regarding fuel storage conditions and the
Secretariat of Planning for the Prevention of Drug Addiction and Fight
against Drug Trafficking (Secretaría de Programación para la Prevención de
la Drogadicción y la Lucha contra el Narcotráfico, SEDRONAR) concerning
chemical substances.
At the provincial level, the 23 provinces have environmental agencies
(mainly at the ministerial or secretariat level).5 And the City of Buenos Aires
397
created its own environmental protection agency in January 2008 (Agencia
de Protección Ambiental). In the Province of Buenos Aires—where the vast
majority of the industrial activity is conducted in the country—the Provin-
cial Sustainable Development Agency (Organismo Provincial para el Desar-
rollo Sostenible, OPDS) plays a very important role in environmental
regulation and permitting.
In December 2006, the Argentine Congress created the Matanza-Riachuelo
Basin Authority6 (Autoridad de Cuenca Matanza-Riachuelo, ACUMAR),
which is subordinate to the SAyDS. ACUMAR was created in the context of an
especially large, extensive environmental contamination case heard by the
Supreme Court of Justice (known as the Riachuelo case),7 as an interjurisdic-
tional agency with preemptive jurisdiction8 over the river basin area of the
City and the Province of Buenos Aires. Since its creation, ACUMAR has been
very active in regulating standards, implementing reconversion activities in
the basin, and enforcing environmental regulations.
II. Air and Climate Change
A. Air Pollution Control
At the federal level, the Air Pollution Law9 applies to all sources, both sta-
tionary and mobile, capable of causing air pollution subject to federal juris-
diction and in all provinces applying it.10 In actual practice, this law has
been scarcely applied.
Pursuant to the provisions of the Transit Law,11 the SAyDS is the author-
ity with jurisdiction over the emission of gaseous pollutants, noises, and
radiation originating from motor vehicles. The SAyDS has approved and
adopted technical criteria and gaseous pollutant limits established by certain
European Union (EU) directives.12
At the provincial level, many jurisdictions regulate stationary source
emissions through concentration limits13 and the granting of air permits. In
general, local regulations do not establish differentiated standards based on
type of activities and/or fuel used. Instead, regulations set forth standards
applicable to all industrial facilities operating within a specific jurisdiction.
In the Province of Buenos Aires, gaseous emissions regulations14 apply
to all generators located in the provincial territory that emit gaseous efflu-
ents into the atmosphere. Such generators must request from OPDS an air
permit to do so (permiso de descarga de efluentes gaseosos a la atmósfera). A gen-
erator’s emissions must meet the values set in the regulations. Regulations
stipulate how the effluent evacuation ducts must be designed and the places
where samples are taken. Furthermore, they establish that it is compulsory
for all industrial facilities to keep a book, certified by OPDS, recording emer-
gencies or irregularities at the industrial plant. Notice of any foreseeable
situation, representing an environmental risk, must be previously served
upon OPDS. Those industrial plants that emit hazardous substances contain-
ing elements described in the Province of Buenos Aires’ law on hazardous/
398 INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

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