EU Economic & Social Committee: “Recognition of ecocide as an international crime is crucial”

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has publicly declared that “recognition of ecocide as an international crime is crucial for tackling environmental offences.”

The Committee also believes ecocide should be addressed directly in the substance of the revised EU Directive on improving protection of the environment through criminal law.  

A text for a revised Directive aiming to strengthen the EU’s response to environmental crime was proposed at the end of last year by the European Commission to replace Directive 2008/99/EC (ECD).  The proposal mentioned ecocide but did not include recognition of it as a criminal offence.

The EESC has assessed the proposal and commented on it (23rd March 2022). Notably, the Committee stated in its response that it “welcomes the reference to 'ecocide' in the recitals. However, the EESC believes that it would be appropriate to include this term in the operational part of the Directive.”