EU Council passes new ecocide rules, but what does that mean?
The Directive marks the conclusion of a legislative journey which began in 2021.
A final vote on whether to enshrine new environmental protections in criminal law was held on Tuesday 26th March 2024. Ratified by the European Parliament in November 2023 with a second vote last month in which 499 were in favour, 100 against and 23 abstained, now all EU member states now have two years to bring their national penal codes up to speed.
Marie Toussaint, a French lawyer and MEP for the Greens/European Free Alliance group described the regulations as ‘one of the most ambitious legislation in the world… the new directive opens a new page in the history of Europe, protecting against those who harm ecosystems and, through them, human health.’
Environmental crimes are now growing up to three times faster than the global economy, and while many commonly associate such offences with developing countries, such actions remain commonplace in Europe, the US, and UK. Examples include agro-industrial pollution, illegal bluefin tuna fishing, and carbon market fraud.
‘The historic vote from the EU to include ecocide-level crimes in its revised crime directive shows leadership and compassion, and will strongly reinforce existing environmental laws across the region,’ said Jojo Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO of Stop Ecocide International. ‘It will establish a clear moral as well as legal “red line”, creating an essential steer for European industry leaders and policy-makers going forward.
‘The EU Parliament showed true ambition back in March 2023 by championing the inclusion in EU law of criminal provision aimed at preventing and punishing the gravest environmental harms. Today’s vote sees the European Council sign and seal this remarkable new piece of legislation,’ she continued.’This trailblazing revised directive has significant implications, not only for environmental safeguarding in Europe, but for humanity as a whole: it connects the regional to the global, sending a strong signal of political support for international legal recognition of ecocide that will be felt around the globe.’
The EU defines ecocide as ‘unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts’. New legislation criminalises ‘cases comparable to ecocide’ for the first time, such as water abstraction, ship recycling, and pollution, introduction and spread of invasive species, and ozone destruction. However, fishing, toxic waste exports, and carbon market fraud are notably absent.
Any individuals found to break the updated laws could face a jail term of up to eight years, or 10 if their actions led to the death of another person. Companies can also be given fixed fines, although EU member states must decide for themselves whether this should be based on a proportion of total turnover, up to a maximum of 5%, or a flat $40million.
More on ecocide:
Experts lobby International Criminal Court on ecocide and Rome Statute
Image: Christian Lue