Members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) gave the green light, on Wednesday 3 June to the European Union’s accession to the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law.
With 20 votes in favour, two against and no abstentions, MEPs approved a new step in strengthening the fight against environmental crime at international level.
The Convention, which was opened for signature in December, seeks to prevent and combat environmental offences more effectively, and to strengthen cooperation between States in this area.
It therefore covers the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution and sanctioning of criminal offences such as pollution, trafficking in protected species, illegal waste management, illegal mining, and damage to water resources and biodiversity.
The EU’s accession follows the 2024 European Environmental Crime Directive (see EUROPE 13413/34). The European Commission took part in the treaty negotiations in order to ensure compatibility with EU law.
The text of the Convention also introduces the concept of a “particularly serious offence” for intentional acts causing irreversible, widespread or long-lasting damage to ecosystems, a provision inspired by the debates on ‘ecocide’. It also provides for mechanisms for international judicial cooperation and a system for monitoring its implementation.
The EU’s accession will now be put to a vote in the European Parliament plenary before approval by the governments of the Member States.
The text of the Convention (in French): https://aeur.eu/f/m5k (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)