Natural Resources Governance

Natural Resources Governance

Investigating the Effect of Judicial Laws on Natural Resources Governance in Baghmalek County

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Shahram Yousefi khanghah 1
Abuzar Hosseini 2
1 Department of Forests and Rangelands Research, East Azerbaijan Agriculture and Natural Resources Research and Education Center, AREEO, Tabriz, Iran.
2 Department of Rangeland and Watershed Management, Faculty of Natural Resources, Behbahan Khatam Alanbia University of Technology, Behbahan, Iran.
10.22059/jnrg.2026.419994.1123
Abstract
Objective: This study aims to investigate the impact of judicial laws on the protection of natural resources, particularly forests and rangelands, in Baghmalek County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. It focuses on assessing the effectiveness of existing legal frameworks and identifying the challenges affecting their implementation in addressing illegal encroachments on national lands.
Method: This study adopts an applied research approach with a descriptive-analytical method. A total of 88 judicial case files related to 29 land parcels across Baghmalek County were examined. The cases were analyzed based on several criteria, including the area and frequency of violations, type of case (criminal or civil), judicial proceedings, issued verdicts, type of plaintiff, and the extent of illegal encroachments on national lands.
Results: The results indicate that the number of criminal cases is approximately three times that of civil cases. The Natural Resources Department was the plaintiff in most cases. Furthermore, approximately two-thirds of the issued verdicts remained unimplemented, while some cases had no clearly documented outcomes. Illegal encroachments varied considerably in terms of area and were distributed across different parts of the county. These findings highlight significant challenges in judicial proceedings and the enforcement of legal decisions concerning natural resource protection.
Conclusions: The existence of judicial laws alone is insufficient to ensure the effective protection of natural resources. Their effectiveness depends on stronger coordination between judicial and executive institutions, addressing legal inconsistencies and gaps, raising stakeholder awareness, and strengthening enforcement mechanisms. Moreover, improving monitoring systems and adopting modern technologies can contribute to detecting and preventing violations, enhancing law enforcement, and promoting good natural resource governance.
Keywords
Baghmalek
Forest
Governance
Judicial Laws
Rangeland.
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Natural Resources Governance
Volume 3, Issue 3
Summer 2026
Pages 143-159