Bearing in mind the work recently started by the CDPC-EC,
it recommends that the Committee of Ministers draft without delay
a new legal instrument to replace the Convention on the Protection
of the Environment through Criminal Law (ETS No. 172), which remains
unimplemented due to the lack of ratifications. The new legal instrument
should address the recent developments in the environmental situation (including
climate change) and should seek to update and improve the existing
convention. It should combine the fundamental principles of criminal
and environmental law and try to achieve a minimum degree of harmonisation
as regards definitions of criminal offences and related sanctions,
according to the following principles:
2.1 the offences and sanctions must be governed by the principle
of legality, namely they must be defined clearly and precisely;
2.2 sanctions must be necessary and proportionate;
2.3 recognition of the general interest of protecting the
environment shall be the core principle;
2.4 a harmonised sanctions mechanism shall be based on solidarity
between the States and the existence of common rules for developing
international co-operation in criminal law;
2.5 the cost of climate change and inaction with regard to
environmental challenges must be well defined, and effective measures
shall be taken and policies developed within a comprehensive and inclusive
framework, in co-operation with other international organisations,
in particular the United Nations, the World Bank, the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the European
Union.
