The Hydra of Lerna in the Mar Menor: on the declaration of constitutionality of Law 19/2022, that personifies the Mar Menor and its basin

Authors

  • Carmen Plaza Martín

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18042/cepc/redc.135.09

Abstract

The ecological crisis of the Mar Menor is somewhat reminiscent of the Hydra of Lerna: a persistent evil that resurfaces with every attempt to eradicate it. Law 19/2022, which grants legal personality to the lagoon, was presented at the time as a new paradigm of environmental protection: a shift towards ecocentrism capable of providing a definitive solution to its deterioration. But this law has raised new problems, some of which have been examined in STC 142/2024. This ruling declares its constitutionality while at the same time “watering down” this shift towards ecocentrism by interpreting several central provisions of the law as mere references to the “anthropocentric” norms that it rejects. Further, it confirms its questionable basic character and its conformity with several precepts of our Constitution without, for the reasons that will be explained below, clearly and incontrovertibly dispelling all the questions of constitutional fit that it raises.

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Author Biography

Carmen Plaza Martín

 

 

Published

2025-12-12

How to Cite

Plaza Martín, C. (2025). The Hydra of Lerna in the Mar Menor: on the declaration of constitutionality of Law 19/2022, that personifies the Mar Menor and its basin. Revista Española De Derecho Constitucional, (135), 285–319. https://doi.org/10.18042/cepc/redc.135.09

Issue

Section

JURISPRUDENCE. CRITICAL STUDIES