Green Crime

• Green Crime

  • Described as a crime against the environment.
  • Threats to the eco-system are ‘global’ rather than ‘local’

  Beck

  • In todays society we have created new ‘manufactured risks’ and live in a global risk society.
• Green Criminology

  Traditional Criminology

  • Occurs when someone breaks the law.

  Green Criminology

  • Look at the notion of harm rather than criminal law, a transgressive criminology.
• Two Views of Harm

  White

  • Anthropocentric - Most states and transnational organisations corporations adopt. Human - centred view of environmental harm.
  • Ecocentric - View that sees humans and environment as interdependent, environmental harm also harms humans.
• Nigel Smith

  2 types of Green Crime

  Primary

  • Crimes that result directly from the destruction and degradation of the earths resources
  • Examples: Air pollution, deforestation, Crimes concerning species decline and animal rights and crimes concerning water pollution.

  Secondary

  • Crimes that grow out of the flouting the rules aimed at preventing or regulating environmental disasters, like governments breaking their own rules and causing environmental harms.
  • Examples: State violence against oppositional groups (state condemn terrorism) , Hazardous waste and organised crime.