The Environmental Crime Directive

For YERA's first large research project, we examined the revision of the European Crime Directive (ECD), an EU law that introduces criminal liability for causing environmental damage.

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On 4 March, YERA Hub held a research event at the Law Hub of the University of Amsterdam. Stakeholders, researchers and students were invited to discuss the findings on the potential and pitfalls of the revised ECD. The event consisted of three panels, each covering part of YERA’s research. As an introduction into the first panel, Roxane Chaplain gave an insight into the negotiations at the EU that led to the revision. As a lawyer in MEP Marie Toussaint’s team Chaplain has been closely involved in the revision process of the ECD. The first panel answered the fundamental question of what constitutes an environmental crime under the ECD. Two considerations play an especially important role in this decision: whether the actor aware of the damage they were causing, and whether they acted based on a permit. These questions, discussed by Zoe Sundergeld and Anna Sarramona, are decisive in establishing whether someone committed an environmental crime. Professor Michael Faure, an expert on environmental crime in Europe, concluded with an insight into how companies that fulfill their permit obligations may still be held criminally liable for damage they cause.

 

In the second panel, we discussed the next steps after the adoption of the revised ECD. After its adoption on EU-level, all Member States must transpose the ECD into their national laws. In the past, some states have failed to implement EU environmental law. Stanimira’s research on illegal logging, has shown that too much leeway in the transposition of EU laws, can lead to faulty implementation of these laws in EU Member States. Looking for a solution, Lia Gobiet discussed measures that citizens can take if national governments do not implement the ECD correctly. These and other issues that arise from implementation on national level were discussed with Lammert van Raan, politician from the Party of the Animals, and Alberto Nictotina, environmental lawyer and researcher in comparative European law. In the third panel, we discussed the effects of the ECD beyond the European Union.

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Lotte van Liempd gave insights into Chilean ecocide legislation with Fernanda Poblete, leader of Chile Sin Ecocidio, and Marco Yáñez Marín, COP delegate of Chile. They stressed that Chile's environmental criminal law is advanced, but could undergo even more ambitious amendments in light of the revised ECD. The panel further expressed the hope that the ECD will provide a basis for holding European companies liable for damages in non-European countries. Whether this will be the case remains to be seen.