CRC/C/GC/26 61. States shall take effective legislative, administrative and other measures to ensure that all children, without discrimination, are able to play and engage in recreational activities in safe, clean and healthy environments, including natural spaces, parks and playgrounds. In public planning, in rural and urban settings, children’s views should be given due weight and the creation of environments promoting their well-being should be prioritized. Consideration should be given to: (a) providing access, by means of safe, affordable and accessible transportation, to green areas, large open spaces and nature for play and recreation; (b) creating a safe local environment that is for free play, free from pollution, hazardous chemicals and waste; and (c) undertaking road traffic measures to reduce pollution levels near households, schools and playgrounds, including through the design of zones in which children playing, walking and cycling have priority. 62. States should introduce legislation, regulations and guidelines, accompanied by necessary budgetary allocations and effective monitoring and enforcement mechanisms, to ensure that third parties comply with article 31 of the Convention, including by establishing safety standards for all toys and play and recreational facilities, in particular concerning toxic substances, in urban and rural development projects. In situations of climate change-related disasters, measures should be taken to restore and protect these rights, including through the creation or restoration of safe spaces and by encouraging play and creative expression to promote resilience and psychological healing. III. Right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment 63. Children have the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. This right is implicit in the Convention and directly linked to, in particular, the rights to life, survival and development, under article 6, to the highest attainable standard of health, including taking into consideration the dangers and risks of environmental pollution, under article 24, to an adequate standard of living, under article 27, and to education, under article 28, including the development of respect for the natural environment, under article 29. 64. The substantive elements of this right are profoundly important for children, given that they include clean air, a safe and stable climate, healthy ecosystems and biodiversity, safe and sufficient water, healthy and sustainable food and non-toxic environments.16 65. Towards the realization of this right for children, the Committee considers that States should immediately take the following action: (a) Improve air quality, by reducing both outdoor and household air pollution, to prevent child mortality, especially among children under 5 years of age; (b) Ensure access to safe and sufficient water and sanitation and healthy aquatic ecosystems to prevent the spread of waterborne illnesses among children; (c) Transform industrial agriculture and fisheries to produce healthy and sustainable food aimed at preventing malnutrition and promoting children’s growth and development; (d) Equitably phase out the use of coal, oil and natural gas, ensure a fair and just transition of energy sources and invest in renewable energy, energy storage and energy efficiency to address the climate crisis; (e) Conserve, protect and restore biodiversity; (f) Prevent marine pollution, by banning the direct or indirect introduction of substances into the marine environment that are hazardous to children’s health and marine ecosystems;17 16 17 GE.23-11144 See A/74/161, A/75/161, A/76/179, A/HRC/40/55, A/HRC/46/28 and A/HRC/49/53. Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic, art. 2.2 (a). 11