Procedimiento Sancionatorio Ambiental 10 años de la Ley 1333 de 2009

On July 21, 2019, ten years have passed since the issuance of Law 1333, through which the Colombian Environmental Sanctioning Procedure was established, a time that has allowed the various legal operators to know and deeply listen to the procedural paths provided in the law. , identify its gaps and weaknesses, analyze its contents and even propose possible modifications. After a decade has passed, we can see with absolute clarity that it is essential to have a legal tool that allows the State to impose legal sanctions and demand reparation for the damage caused to the natural environment, in accordance with the provisions of Article 80 of the Political Constitution. Colombian. Law 1333 of 2009 is one of the pillars of Colombian environmental law, it represents the punitive response to the generation of damage to nature or to the apathy, disinterest or willingness of a specific subject to fail to comply with a prohibition, obligation or condition. established by the environmental legal system.Environmental sanctioning administrative law seeks to guarantee the preservation and restoration of the legal system; Following what was stated by the Constitutional Court in Sentence C-818 of 2005, we must understand that with the imposition of the sanction, the illegal conduct is not only condemned but also its occurrence is prevented. This last objective of administrative sanctioning law is especially relevant in environmental matters since, by its nature, this branch of the legal system mainly seeks to avoid damage.

Due to its special significance, it is vital that the procedural iter determined in the law effectively allows for the protection of the environment; It is required that the threat of sanction be sufficient to dissuade members of society from failing to comply with what is determined by the legal system and comply with their citizen duty to protect the cultural and natural resources of the country, and ensure the conservation of a healthy environment, as ordered by article 95, paragraph 8 of the C.P. Likewise, the sanction must indicate to the offender that violation of the rule brings punitive consequences that negatively affect their situation, so they will not be encouraged to violate the normative order again.