Environmental Crime, Regulatory Evolution and Enforcement Challenges

Abstract

This study explores the environmental crime, the role law can play and challenges faced by regulatory agencies in implementation of environmental laws. The paper briefly discusses the environment, crimes specifically related to the environment and the enforcement challenges faced by different jurisdictions. Environment crime is illegal activities that degrade environment. It starts from exploitation of natural resources and ends in carelessness by natural and artificial person. Illegal logging, illicit trade of natural resources, fisheries crime, hazardous waste, and pollution etc. are the examples of environmental crimes. The study is exploratory in nature and analyse the theory. The research is based on the primary data such as the statutes and the secondary data, which are scholarly articles. It is found that weak enforcement is the result of insufficient data, unclear sanctions, infrequent prosecutions, corruption among bureaucrats particularly in developing countries, administrative penalties rather than criminal, limited resources, and lack of cross border cooperation.