As is well known, one of the issues considered a priority by the European Union is the protection of the environment. EU bodies are consistently taking action to achieve related objectives. Among others, in February this year the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law. It is intended to replace the 2008 directive and significantly strengthen criminal law protection of the environment. It is planned to expand the catalogue of acts that should be considered environmental offences by Member States, but not only. There is also greater emphasis on the prosecution of collective entities compared to the current directive.
The new directive stipulates that Member States are to ensure that certain acts constitute offences under the criminal law of the country. Much of this is already covered by the current Directive 2008/99/EC, but there are novelties.
It is planned to require Member States to bring into force the provisions necessary to implement the Directive within 2 years of its entry into force.
Chapter XXIII of the Penal Code already regulates offences against the environment. However, the broad scope of the new directive will necessitate amendments to existing legislation and the introduction of new offences. The new directive should also motivate those in power to address the problem of ineffective provisions on the liability of collective entities for criminal offences.
Full article is available in Polish here.
