General Principles of EU Law: Systemic Implications of "Twin" TFEU Article 11 and EUCFR Article 37

Abstract

Under the basic tenet of sustainable development, TFEU Article 11 compels the integration of environmental protection into the regulatory action of the European Union (EU). Such a provision is paralleled in the human rights framework by ‘twin’ EUCFR Article 37. What are the implications of this dual system? The analysis assesses the systemic implications of the inclusion of TFEU Article 11 and EUCFR Article 37 as core twin provisions in different sources of EU law, particularly in light of the foreseeable accession of the EU to the ECHR envisaged in TEU Article 6(2). Arguably, TFEU Article 11 and EUCFR Article 37 create an imbalance between the EU and ECHR legal systems and might foster the full establishment of environmental protection as a fundamental right in both EU law and the ECHR.