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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 3:40 am
Time: 3:40 am
Results for illegal wastes
1 results foundAuthor: Huglo Lepage & Partners Title: Study on Environmental Crime in the 27 Member States Summary: On 27 January 2003, on the initiative of the Kingdom of Denmark, the Council of the European Union adopted the framework Decision. Based on Title VI of the Treaty on European Union, the framework decision constitutes, as is clear from the first three recitals in its preamble, the instrument by which the European Union intends to respond with concerted action to the disturbing increase in offences posing a threat to the environment. The framework decision lays down a number of environmental offences, in respect of which the Member States are required to prescribe criminal penalties. The framework decision distinguished environmental offences committed intentionally from negligent offences. The requested study does not explicitly mention this distinction. We understand that it should cover both intentional and negligent offences. With regard to the environmental offences, the framework decision stated in its articles 2 to 7 that : Member States shall adopt necessary measures to qualify these infringement as criminal offences; Member States shall ensure that, under national legislation, participating or instigating the offences is punishable The criminal penalties laid down in each Member State shall be “effective, proportionate and dissuasive” and shall include, at least in serious cases, penalties involving deprivation of liberty which can give rise to extradition. Criminal penalties may be accompanied by other penalties or measures. Legal persons shall be liable as the result of an act or omission and the sanctions to which they are to be subject under national legislation shall include criminal and non-criminal fines and may include other sanctions. The other provisions of the framework decision were dealing with jurisdiction , extradition and prosecutions of persons who have committed environmental offences. In case C-176/03 the Commission, supported by the European Parliament, requested the Court to annul the framework decision in its entirety, claiming that article 2 to 7 of the act were falling within the Community’s competence. In its judgment given on 13 September 2005, the Court held that, although the Community legislature has no general competence in criminal matters, it is competent, under Article 175 EC, to require the Member States to prescribe penalties for infringements of Community environment-protection legislation if it takes the view that that is a necessary means of ensuring that the EC environmental legislation is effective. In other word the Court considered that the (partial) harmonisation of national criminal laws, in particular of the constituent elements of environmental offences and of the criminal penalties attached to these offences, is designed to support the EC environmental policy. It stems from the Judgment of the Court that the EC legislature can adopt a Directive based on article 175 EC if : The main purpose of this act is the protection of the environment; Member States national legislation differ as regards the constituent elements of various criminal offences committed to the detriment of the environment; The criminal penalties applicable to the various criminal offences differ greatly from one Member State to another and are not effective, proportionate and dissuasive • Aim and scope of the study The European Commission plans to submit to the European Parliament and the Council a proposal for a directive on environmental crime. In order to justify its proposal with regards to the above mentioned Court judgement, the Commission needs to demonstrate that a harmonisation of criminal laws of the Member States, in particular of the constituent elements of environmental offences and of the criminal penalties attached to these offences, is necessary to ensure the proper implementation of EC environmental legislation. Therefore, it is necessary for the Commission to be able to provide the Council and the Parliament with an overview of the current legislation in the Member states regarding criminal offences that differ from those covered in the Framework decision, in order to justify the harmonisation of these measures. A first step in a harmonisation effort is that the Commission should know how the non-respect of national rules implementing specific provisions of 4 Directives and 1 Regulation are sanctioned in the various member states today. The relevant environmental offences are: the unlawful discharge of hazardous substances into water; the unlawful dumping of waste; the illegal shipment of waste as defined in Article 2(35) of the Waste Shipment Regulations; the unlawful significant deterioration of a protected habitat; the unlawful trade in or use of ozone-depleting substances Three studies have already been carried out on this issue on behalf of the Commission in 2002 and 2003. However, theses studies did not cover the exact same offences and did not cover the now 27 Members States. Besides, the information contained in these previous studies had to be updated. The study covers the five listed offences and aims at conveying a clear overview of the national legislation in force and the levels of sanctions. Although the case law and the judicial practice may influence the effectiveness of penalties, this study covers only legislation and not case law or judicial practice. Details: Brussels: Huglo Lepage & Partners, 2007. 16p.; appendices Source: Internet Resource: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/legal/crime/pdf/report_environmental_crime.pdf Year: 2007 Country: Europe URL: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/legal/crime/pdf/report_environmental_crime.pdf Shelf Number: 123676 Keywords: Hazardous WastesIllegal WastesOffences Against the EnvironmentOzone DepletionWaste Management |