EU: unanimous vote in legal committee to recognize ecocide-level crimes
Today the EU has come a significant step closer to recognising ecocide in the revised Directive for the protection of the environment through criminal law.
Following the direction of travel established in the 4 previous consultative committees, the last and most important of these in the context of this Directive, the legal affairs (JURI) committee, unanimously voted today to include the most serious environmental crimes - widely known as “ecocide” - in its proposed text for the Directive which will be presented in the EU Parliament on 17th April.
The proposed text uses language extremely close to the consensus international definition of ecocide (June 2021) proposed by the Independent Expert Panel (IEP) convened by the Stop Ecocide Foundation. A specific definition for the “gravest crimes” is included, taking into account the conditions for harm used in the IEP draft: “severe and either widespread or long-term or irreversible” (with the corresponding definitions of those terms* also closely following those used in the IEP draft). The proposal mandates Member states to ensure that those gravest crimes are sanctioned accordingly in their legal systems.
The word “ecocide” is specifically used in the recital** (preamble) of the proposed Directive, where it is linked to the same conditions of severe and either widespread or long-term or irreversible damage.
This is the first time that such a definition has been included in a legislative text at European level. Three years ago the concept of ecocide was virtually unknown in the EU. Thanks to dedicated awareness raising and diplomatic, legal and political advocacy (in particular from the tireless Marie Toussaint MEP and her indomitable team), the EU Parliament will be at liberty to approve this text on 17th April as a historic first.
This would send a very strong message indeed to the ensuing discussion or “trilogue” with the EU Commission and Council of Ministers to reach a final text for the revised Directive.
Meantime civil society support for the recognition of ecocide in the EU continues to grow, with actions available for the public and for NGOs, businesses and other organisations to join:
*Article 2 (definitions)
“Severe”, for the purpose of Article 3 paragraph 1a, means damage which involves very serious adverse changes, disruption or harm to any element of the environment, including grave impacts on human life or natural resources;
“Widespread” , for the purpose of Article 3 paragraph 1a, means damage which extends beyond a limited geographic area, crosses state boundaries, or is suffered by an entire ecosystem or species or a large number of human beings;
“Long-term” , for the purpose of Article 3 paragraph 1a, means damage which cannot be redressed through natural recovery within a reasonable period of time;
Article 3 (offences)
Member States shall ensure that any conduct causing severe and either widespread or long-term or irreversible damage shall be treated as an offence of particular gravity and sanctioned as such in accordance with the legal systems of the Member States.
**Recital (with ecocide)
When an environmental criminal offence causes severe and either widespread or long-term or irreversible damage to the quality of air, the quality of soil or the quality of water, or to biodiversity, ecosystems services and functions, animals or plants, this should be considered a crime of particular gravity, and sanctioned as such in accordance with the legal systems of the Member States, covering ecocide, for which the United Nations are currently working on an official international definition.