ABSTRACT
Article 10 imposed on states not just a duty to make available information to the public on environmental matters, a requirement with which Italian law already appeared to comply, by virtue of section 14(3) of Law No 349 in particular, but also a positive obligation to collect, process and disseminate such information, which by its nature could not otherwise come to the knowledge of the public. The protection afforded by Art 10 therefore had a preventive function with respect to potential violations of the Convention in the event of serious damage to the environment and Art 10 came into play even before any direct infringement of other fundamental rights, such as the right to life or to respect for private and family life, occurred.
