Paris moves to grant Seine legal rights - inspired by New Zealand

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took a dip in the River Seine to show the river was clean enough for water events to be held for the Olympic Games last year. Photo / Ville de Paris

French authorities want to give legal rights to the River Seine to better defend the world-famous waterway in court and protect its fragile ecosystem, part of a global movement to grant legal personhood to nature.

In a resolution adopted this week, the Paris City Council called on parliament to pass a law granting the Seine legal personhood to enable “an independent guardian authority to defend its rights in court”.

“The Seine must be able to defend itself, as a subject of law and not as an object, because it will always be under attack,” said Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo.

Conservationists have backed granting fragile ecosystems such as rivers and mountains basic legal rights to better protect them.

New Zealand's Whanganui River was the first in the world to gain legal personhood. Now Paris is following with similar protection for the River Seine. Photo / Bevan Conley

In a world first, New Zealand in 2017 recognised the Whanganui River, revered by Māori as a living entity, with legislation combining Western legal precedent and Māori beliefs.

In 2022, Spain granted personhood status to the Mar Menor, one of Europe’s largest saltwater lagoons, to give its threatened ecosystem better protection.

The Paris Council based its decision on the conclusions of a citizens’ convention on the future of the Seine held between March and May.

Fifty citizens chosen at random proposed granting the Seine fundamental rights such as “the right to exist, to flow and to regenerate”.

The Seine must be considered an ecosystem that “no one can claim ownership of”, where the preservation of life must “take precedence over everything”, the convention concluded.

It also noted “positive” change, with the Seine now home to around 40 species of fish, compared to only four in 1970.

French authorities spent more than a billion euros ahead of the 2024 Olympics to clean up the Seine, the 777km river that flows through Paris past the Louvre, Notre Dame cathedral and other iconic landmarks.

However, it is threatened by pollution, rising water temperatures and the use of pesticides in agriculture.

The opening of the river to the public for swimming this summer could present “additional risks”, warned the convention.

Fulfilling a key legacy promise from the Paris Games, authorities are to allow the public to swim from July 5 at three points in the Seine, which is now deemed safe for a dip.

- Agence France-Presse