{"id":9092,"date":"2026-07-25T13:27:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T13:27:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.endecocide.org\/?page_id=9092"},"modified":"2026-07-25T13:34:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T13:34:09","slug":"francais-article-on-the-european-environmental-crime-directive","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.endecocide.org\/fr\/francais-article-on-the-european-environmental-crime-directive\/","title":{"rendered":"Article on the European Environmental Crime Directive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Article by Katarina Marinovi\u0107 – Law student from the University of Belgrade<\/strong><\/p>\n

This article is based on a presentation given by the student at the conference: \u00ab\u00a0The Role of European Union Law in the Ecological and Climate Transition: Challenges and perspectives\u00a0\u00bb held in Obedska Bara Special Nature Reserve 30th June 2026 organised by Jean Monnet Chair in European Environmental Law and Climate Change Law and the OSCE Mission to Serbia.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The Significance of Directive (EU) 2024\/1203 on Environmental Protection through Criminal Law
\nand the Development of Climate Change Law
\n<\/strong>
\nNormative Framework and the Significance of the EU’s New Environmental Agenda
\nThe adoption of Directive (EU) 2024\/1203 on the protection of the environment through criminal law represents a milestone in the legal order of the European Union. The previous approach, which primarily relied on administrative sanctions and civil liability, proved insufficiently effective in preventing the systemic destruction of nature. In the context of accelerating climate change, the new Directive serves not only as an instrument for punishing polluters but also as a key tool for implementing the European ‘Green Agenda’; The aim of this article is to analyze how the expansion of the criminal law framework contributes to the global fight against climate change.<\/p>\n

To understand the fundamental significance of the new legislative framework, it is necessary to reflect on the limitations that have characterized the past decades. Criminal protection of the environment in the EU has long faced a challenge that legal theory recognizes as administrative offenses. Although the previous Directive 2008\/99\/EC laid a foundation by defining a minimum list of criminal offenses, its practical application was hampered by normative imprecision. The use of legally indeterminate concepts, such as the term ‘substantial damage’ left too much room for judicial interpretation, which often prevented prosecutors from effectively prosecuting major polluters. These shortcomings, combined with an inconsistent penal policy, became the driving force behind the creation of a significantly more rigorous legal act \u2014 Directive (EU) 2024\/1203.<\/p>\n

With the adoption of Directive (EU) 2024\/1203, replacing the previous Directive, the European Union is entering a new era of environmental justice. The new Directive not only expands the list of criminal offenses and introduces stricter prison sentences, but also, for the first time, clearly links the destruction of ecosystems to the global climate crisis.<\/p>\n

Unlike the previous Directive, which relied on administrative measures and minor offenses, the 2024 Directive takes a step forward by introducing a system of punishment for so-called ‘qualified criminal offenses’ committed intentionally or with conscious negligence, which lead to the destruction of ecosystems in their entirety.<\/p>\n

A substantive analysis of the implementation of this concept through the Directive includes three key elements:<\/p>\n

\uf0b7 Criterion of qualified damage<\/em>: The Directive does not sanction every instance of routine
\nindustrial pollution but explicitly requires meeting high criteria of environmental destruction.
\nThe damage must be ‘severe’; and ‘widespread’; (whether in geographic scope or impact on the entire community), or ‘long-lasting’; (with consequences that cannot be easily or quickly remediated), a standard that has also been adopted by member states in their respective
\nnational legislation.
\n\uf0b7 Harmonization of penal policy and deterrence<\/em>: One of the main objectives of the Directive is to establish effective, proportionate, and dissuasive criminal sanctions. This includes strict prison
\nsentences for responsible natural persons, as well as massive financial penalties for legal entities, thereby ending the practice of corporate impunity in which fines were treated as a
\nstandard ‘cost of doing business’;<\/p>\n

\uf0b7 Expansion of jurisdiction and cross-border impact<\/em>: By its nature, environmental damage does not respect state borders. The implementation of the Directive obliges EU member states to
\nharmonize their criminal laws so that polluters can no longer evade liability by hiding behind
\nnational borders. Such legal integration facilitates international legal assistance and the
\nprosecution of cross-border ecocide.<\/p>\n

Ecocide as a New Criminal Offense in EU Law<\/strong><\/p>\n

However, the greatest challenge and the most significant leap in this field is the introduction of the criminal offense of ‘ecocide’; into the penal systems of both the Republic of Serbia and other states. A pivotal moment in the legal conceptualisation of this criminal offense occurred in 2021, when an Independent Expert Panel drafted a definition of ecocide as &quot;unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment’.<\/p>\n

This definition introduced two important criteria:<\/p>\n

\uf0b7 Unlawfulness or wantonness:<\/em> The focus is not solely on violating existing laws, but also on
\nconduct that ignores clear risks to nature.
\n\uf0b7 Severity and duration of damage:<\/em> The damage must be such that it cannot be easily remediated or that it affects vast areas, thereby distinguishing ecocide from ‘ordinary’; environmental offenses.
\n\uf0b7 This legal definition directly shaped the European Union Directive on the protection of the
\nenvironment through criminal law (Directive 2024\/1203). Furthermore, its integration into the
\nRome Statute of the International Criminal Court is envisaged, which would make ecocide the
\nfifth international crime\u2014alongside genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and the
\ncrime of aggression.<\/p>\n

The Significance of the Legal Institute of ‘severe damage’; as Ecocide in Climate Change Law<\/strong><\/p>\n

The introduction of the legal institute of ‘severe damage’; to the environment, which is increasingly treated in legal theory as ‘ecocide’; represents the most significant breakthrough of Directive (EU) 2024\/1203. It is important to emphasize that, although the Directive does not explicitly use the term ‘ecocide’ in its title, through its precise description and regulation of severe damage, it operationally defines this concept, thereby demonstrating a deep understanding of contemporary legal challenges.<\/p>\n

Unlike the previous approach, which largely treated environmental incidents as administrative failures, the legal institute of severe damage entails a legal recognition of the irreversibility of damage. In the context of climate change law, this is crucial: the destruction of natural carbon sinks\u2014such as ancient forests or vital aquatic ecosystems\u2014is now viewed not merely as a violation of nature conservation regulations, but as an act that directly threatens global climate stability. Thus, environmental legal protection is elevated to the level of a fundamental value, obliging member states to treat such acts as the most serious forms of criminal offenses. This normative approach directly impacts the suppression of corporate practices that contribute to the climate crisis for the sake of short-term profit, thereby transforming environmental law from a corrective instrument into a preventive tool for the defense of the planet.<\/p>\n

Harmonization of Criminal Legislation with EU Standards: Implementation Challenges in the Context of Climate Change Law<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although the Directive sets high standards, its true significance will depend on its implementation into national legislations. I believe that the process of harmonization in Serbia and the Balkan region will be a crucial test for the success of these measures. Our judicial system is facing an immense challenge: there is an urgent need for the specialization of prosecutors and judges in prosecuting complex environmental criminal offenses. In a region where natural resources are exposed to the pressures of mining and energy transition, the shift from a declarative acceptance of norms to their actual application in courtrooms represents a key turning point. It is my personal stance that the success of these measures will depend solely on the states’ readiness to support an independent judiciary that will not hesitate to
\nsanction powerful polluters, regardless of their influence. Only through such enforcement can we prevent ‘green goals’; from getting lost in administrative labyrinths.<\/p>\n

Concluding Remarks: <\/strong><\/p>\n

Criminal Law as an Instrument of Climate Stability Directive (EU) 2024\/1203 transforms criminal law from a reactive system into a preventive system for the protection of the environment and climate change. By introducing strict, proportionate penalties, it sends a clear message: environmental destruction is no longer permissible business strategy. The success of this Directive will be measurable only when environmental crime becomes an act that carries the inevitable risk of a severe criminal sanction, thereby finally equating environmental law with the protection of fundamental human values and the stability of the planet.<\/p>\n

Analysis of the legal framework for environmental protection through criminal law in the context of climate change law, prepared by:
\n<\/strong>
\nKatarina Marinkovi\u0107
\nStudent at the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade<\/p>\n

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