Abstract:
Mangrove ecosystems are critical to coastal environmental governance, supporting biodiversity
conservation, climate resilience, and effective realization of the emerging human rights to a healthy
environment. In Sri Lanka, however, accelerating coastal degradation and fragmented environmental
governance threaten mangrove sustainability and the livelihoods of coastal communities. Despite
increasing recognition of the right to a healthy environment in international law, Sri Lanka’s legal and
institutional frameworks remain sectoral and inadequately equipped to ensure effective mangrove
ecosystem protection. This study examines the absence of a coherent, rights-based legal framework
integrating environmental protection with enforceable human rights obligations and evaluates its
implications for ecosystem conservation and community vulnerability. This study critically interrogates
the extent to which the right to a healthy environment is recognized and operationalized within Sri
Lanka’s constitutional, statutory, and policy regimes, evaluates the effectiveness and limitations of
existing governance mechanisms in regulating mangrove conservation, and examines the role of
environmental education and capacity building in facilitating participatory, rights-oriented
environmental governance. Employing a doctrinal legal methodology, the study systematically
analyses constitutional provisions, statutes, regulations, national policies, and judicial decisions,
supplemented by relevant international environmental and human rights instruments as well as a critical
review of secondary literature. The study further applies thematic legal analysis to evaluate statutory
inconsistencies, institutional overlaps, and governance gaps affecting mangrove protection. The
literature review process involved examining peer-reviewed journal articles, policy reports,
international conventions, judicial decisions, and governmental publications relating to environmental
governance, human rights, and coastal ecosystem protection. Primary legal sources for the analysis were
examined through a review of constitutional provisions, statutes, regulations, national policies, and
reported case law relevant to mangrove conservation and environmental rights in Sri Lanka. The
findings demonstrate that deficiencies in legal coherence, institutional coordination, and enforcement
capacity significantly undermine the protection of mangrove ecosystems. At the same time, the absence
of explicit constitutional or statutory recognition of the right to a healthy environment constrains both
accountability mechanisms and judicial oversight. Moreover, limited environmental legal awareness
and inadequate community participation further weaken governance outcomes. The article contends
that the meaningful realization of mangrove sustainability in Sri Lanka necessitates the doctrinal and
institutional entrenchment of a human rights-based approach within environmental law, supported by
targeted legal reforms, strengthened governance frameworks, and the strategic integration of
environmental education and capacity-building initiatives.
