The Congress of Michoacan has unanimously approved a constitutional amendment recognizing the right to a healthy, safe and sustainable environment, marking a significant shift in the state’s legal framework for environmental protection and land-use governance. The decree was passed with 34 votes in favor as part of the harmonization of Mexico’s federal constitutional reform enacted in November 2024. With this change, the right to a healthy environment is formally incorporated into the Political Constitution of Michoacán, making it a binding obligation for state authorities, municipalities and communal governments.
Under the reform, public authorities are required to guarantee environmental justice, promote ecosystem restoration, and prevent, control and remediate pollution affecting air, water and soil. The amendment also explicitly authorizes the use of geoprocessing and spatial analysis technologies to monitor territory and enforce environmental regulations.
A central element of the reform is the introduction of the Precautionary Principle. In cases of scientific uncertainty regarding the risk of serious or irreversible environmental damage, authorities must act preventively, shifting the burden of proof to project developers to demonstrate the absence of harm. The reform further guarantees citizens the right to meaningful public participation and access to environmental justice.
The amendment also revises Article 2 of the state Constitution to explicitly prohibit animal cruelty and mistreatment, while mandating the care, dignified treatment and protection of domestic and wild animals. In addition, it requires environmental certification for all legal transactions involving real estate, including sales, leases, transfers and property regularization. These certificates must document legal status, existing contamination and any environmental restrictions. The reform further mandates that all public and private projects incorporate sustainability criteria.
Giulianna Bugarini Torres, a Morena state lawmaker and president of the Michoacan Congress, said the reform responds to a constitutional initiative submitted by Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla and elevates environmental protection tools —such as the Forest Guardian program—to constitutional status. “By granting the Forest Guardian constitutional rank, future governments will be obligated to preserve and strengthen this mechanism for protecting natural resources,” Bugarini said. “Today we legislate with the future in mind. This reform obliges the state to prevent, investigate, sanction and remedy environmental damage, and to promote sustainable development.”
Ramírez Bedolla described the amendment as historic, arguing that it will make Michoacán the first state in Mexico to require mandatory environmental criteria for real estate transactions. He said that every purchase, sale, transfer or regularization of land will now require an environmental opinion certified through the Public Property Registry and directly linked to the Forest Guardian system. “This will confront illegal real estate practices involving rural land, orchards and agricultural plots,” the governor said. “Buyers will know the environmental liabilities of a property, and simulation will end.”
During debate on the amendment, PRI lawmaker Guillermo Valencia introduced a reservation objecting to the prohibition on animal cruelty. Valencia argued that the language could be interpreted as banning cultural traditions such as jaripeos—local rodeos featuring bull riding—or restricting the operation of municipal slaughterhouses. His proposal sought to clarify that activities related to cultural traditions and food consumption would not be considered animal cruelty.
The reservation was rejected with 18 votes against and eight in favor. Lawmakers from the ruling coalition defended the original wording. Sandra Arreola Ruiz, president of the Sustainable Development and Environment Commission, said the text is general, non-punitive and refers enforcement to existing legislation. “It establishes guiding principles based on the federal Constitution and avoids discretionary interpretation,” Arreola said during the session.
Arreola and fellow lawmaker Emma Rivera, who heads the Constitutional Affairs Commission, said the reform strikes a balance between environmental protection and legal certainty. Arreola described the amendment as a shift in the state’s development model. “There can be no development without sustainability, and no well-being without a healthy environment,” she said.
Morena lawmaker Juan Pablo Celis said the reform places people and life at the center of public decision-making. “Protecting forests, rivers and natural resources will no longer be rhetoric; it will be law,” he said. Celis highlighted the constitutional recognition of citizen participation and the use of geospatial technologies to strengthen monitoring tools such as the Forest Guardian and Water Guardian.
Octavio Ocampo Córdova, also a member of the Constitutional Affairs Commission, emphasized that the amendment establishes clear liability for environmental damage. “Environmental harm will generate responsibility for those who cause it, and any person will have the right to demand repair or compensation,” he said, calling the reform a foundation for sustainable development and long-term protection of the state’s natural heritage.
Business Sector Concerns
Despite widespread support from the Michoacan Congress, business-sector opposition to the amendment has emerged, particularly in the agricultural and real estate sectors. Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla acknowledged that producer organizations, including the Asociación de Productores y Empacadores Exportadores de Aguacate en México, have raised concerns about the reform. In particular, they have cited the clause that seeks to eliminate illegal land-use changes, particularly deforestation followed by the establishment of fruit orchards that later increase land value. Another point of contention for producers is the plan to increase penalties for illegal water extraction, which authorities say has degraded agricultural land.
This clause has also generated unease among some business groups in the real estate sector, who view the measures as adding legal and financial risk to property deals. Under the new framework, buyers and sellers can be held responsible if land was deforested illegally, even if the buyer was unaware of the violation.
While recognizing business sector concern, Ramírez Bedolla emphasized that the strengthened measures are necessary for the state’s future growth and resilience in the face of climate change. Calling environmental protection “a vital issue, not a symbolic one,” he underlined that Michoacan must balance economic activity with long-term resource conservation. Ramírez Bedolla argued that while agricultural production is economically important, overexploitation of land must be regulated to protect natural resources. The governor added that legal challenges, including injunctions, are likely but said the state will defend the reform as an environmental priority.
Alejandro Méndez López, head of the state Ministry of Environment, said the intent is to curb speculation in agricultural land. He noted that notaries will be required to verify whether a property has active environmental complaints before authorizing a sale. “With this reform, we are warning potential buyers that a property has an environmental problem and that it may be better not to acquire it,” Méndez said.
The minister cited past practices in which individuals purchased rural land, cleared forests to plant avocado orchards, and later sold the land at inflated prices. The new rules aim to disrupt that model by linking land titles to environmental records, including reports generated through the Forest Guardian monitoring system.