Why is AI controversial in environmental information access? Author: Elisa Cristea The right to access environmental information is a fundamental principle of environmental law and the first pillar of the Aarhus Convention. However, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has introduced complex debates about how this right is exercised. A recent opinion from Advocate General Medina in Case C-129/24 sheds light on some of these controversies, particularly concerning anonymity and the potential for abuse. The Aarhus Convention establishes the "three pillars" of environmental democracy: access to information, public participation, and access to justice. As the Advocate General emphasized, access to environmental information is a precondition for the other rights. EU law, specifically Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on public access to environmental information, aims to implement the Aarhus Convention. This directive ou...