Circular Asia News - Issue 19

Climate, Environmental Crime and the Circular Economy

When we think about the law and the circular economy, we do not, generally, think about crime. Yet, environmental crime is growing even though circular economy related crime is still very small. Writing this article required several hours of research and, I have to admit, it was shocking reading.

Natural Capital Crime

The excessive use of agricultural pesticides has led to an acute shortage of bees to pollinate one of California's most valuable crops - almonds. And this lack of a natural supply has increased the value of bees. California draws up to 90% of all managed beehives in the US to its state when the almond trees are in flower. It is during this time that thievery prevails.

“So it’s a pretty small pool of people that are able to steal them. But the reward is so big that I think it can be tempting to people to do that.”

Experts have warned that a widespread decline of bee species is risking food security in parts of the world, with the demands for pollinated crops increasing by 300% worldwide in the past 50 years as the pollination supply falters due to habitat destruction, the use of poisonous insecticides and the climate crisis.

The Growing Volume of Climate and Environmental Crime

The huge amount of money being committed to climate change will attract organised crime. Historically, environmental crime was, generally, restricted to animal trafficking and waste. According to Europol's website, it states, "Overall, the annual value of transnational environmental crime is estimated to be worth between US$70 to $213 billion annually." Environmental crime is characterised by its impact on the natural environment. This impact manifests itself in

• Increasing levels of pollution
• A degradation of wildlife
• A reduction in biodiversity
• The disturbance of ecological balance.

The Hidden Cost of Climate Crime

The relationships between climate change and violent and non-violent crime have short, medium and longer-term dimensions. Specific criminal behaviours are associated with a particular shock or stress. There is fairly extensive research indicating a moderate to strong causal relationship between various climate-related shocks and stresses and both violent and non-violent crime. While the extent of these connections varies, the available evidence suggests that dramatic climate change will generate a substantial increase in crime in many cities - and especially more vulnerable neighbourhoods and households that are already registering deep inequities and concentrated disadvantage.

There is also evidence that natural and human-made disasters are typically followed by longer-term increases in crime rates relative to the baseline. Studies of floods, earthquakes and other shocks also reveal a range of shorter and longer-term crime effects, the most common being upward shifts in property crime as well as the intensification of domestic and intimate partner abuse.

Crime and the Circular Economy

To date, most of the crime related to the circular economy is with waste. One interesting analysis from Francesco Camplani states, "The circular economy is an innovative system of garbage management, based on the concept that most of the production of goods should be intended already at its origin to avoid disposal. On the other side, it underlines the necessity of intending garbage as a resource for a secondary industrial cycle...Within this frame, how can (environmental) criminal law contribute to the correct development and implementation of a circular economy system?"

Waste typically has a negative value - it costs businesses money to treat it in a way?that is safe and does not harm the environment. Costs include treatment, technology and labour costs in line with national laws and environmental regulations.

There is an incentive for companies wishing to avoid these costs to export the waste to other countries with less strict environmental standards or to illegally dump and dispose of such waste. Many companies are in developed countries and include licensed waste management firms. Common destinations depending on the type of waste are Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and West Africa.

Waste trafficking is a high-profit and low-risk crime. Detection, investigations and prosecutions are rare, and penalties are low. Law enforcement officers may lack the specialist knowledge and technical capacity to differentiate legal from illegal waste shipments.?

From a wider?enforcement point of view, it is urgent and critical for environmental law enforcement officers to gain greater knowledge of money laundering and increase their technical capacity in asset tracing.?In the case of Indonesia, the Indonesian Constitutional Court on 29 June 2021 decided to give authority to specialist environmental enforcement officers to enforce money laundering offences related to environmental crimes.

However, the circular economy is not an "...innovative system of garbage management." There are also the economic functions commonly known as the Circular Rs. How will criminals and organised crime co-opt these functions? In 2021, a MSc student, Ms Shushmita?Khan, conducted research on crime along the circular economy supply chain and wrote in her thesis, "Circular economy?is a popular model promoted by governments and various sectors globally however, crime in relation to the circular economy is yet to be studied.?This study used?horizon scanning to initiate ideas prompting further research and discussion about the vulnerabilities and opportunities for crime along circular economy supply chains based on crime science theories."

?Conclusion?

At COP27, the United States committed to not only meeting President Biden’s ambitious goal to quadruple U.S. climate finance to over $11 billion a year and working with other countries to meet the goal of mobilizing $100 billion but also to using public finance in new and innovative ways to unlock the much larger pools of capital that will be required to tackle the climate crisis.??

The EU is allocating a similar volume of funds for climate change, and other developed countries are also setting aside substantial amounts of money towards new technologies, sustainability and the circular economy. There is no doubt these vast amounts of money will attract criminals and organised crime.

While criminals may be attracted to securing a slice of the climate change fund pie, it is the crime against ordinary citizens that will be of greater concern. Waste crime has been around for quite some time. Ordinary citizens will not only have to adapt to increased disaster but also cope with the emergence of criminal activities. Two questions: (1) Do law enforcement agencies have the resources to investigate and prosecute these crimes? (2) Do citizens understand how vulnerable they may become?

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This is our last newsletter for 2022. Our publication will resume in January 2023. Please note: Circular Economy Asia is also fundraising in order to deliver on our vision and mission for the years to come. You can visit our fundraising page, 'Delivering our Vision & Mission'.

Ms Adrienna Zsakay is CEO of?Circular Economy Asia Inc,?and this article represents her opinions on the circular economy.

References

'California beekeepers turn to GPS tracking and cameras to foil hive thefts' by Oliver Milman, 22 February 2022, The Guardian.

Europol Environmental Crime

'Climate Change and Crime in Cities' published by Igarape Institute, 2021

'Environmental Criminal Law Towards Circular Economy' by Francesco Camplani, Parthenope University of Naples, Italy

'Illegal waste trade: what’s driving this multi-billion dollar transnational crime and what could stop it?' published 16 July 2021, Basel Institute of Governance.

'FACT SHEET: President?Biden Announces New Initiatives at COP27 to Strengthen U.S. Leadership in Tackling Climate?Change', 11 November 2022