Green Crime

Question 1

What is traditional green cime?

Answer 1

• Situ and Emmons define environmental crime as an unathorised act or omission that violates law

Question 2

What are the problems of definitions of green crime?

Answer 2

• There is multiple definitions and environmental regulations change from area to area

Question 3

What is transgressive gren crime?

Answer 3

• Green criminologists such as Rob White argue that any action that harms the physical environment or creatures within it, is an act of green crime even if no law has been broken

Question 4

What are the two different views or environmental harm?

Answer 4

1. Ecocentric - Green criminologists argue that damage to the environment is also damage to the other specieies which puts the human race at risk
2. Anthropocentric - Humans have the right to exploit the environment and other species for their own benefit as long as humans aren’t affected and therefore it is not a crime. This is the perspective of humanity

Question 5

What approach do green criminologists take?

Answer 5

• Need to take a transgressive approach, any crime that causes environmental harm should be considered whether it is or isn’t illegal

Question 6

What is primary green crime?

Answer 6

• Direct result of destruction of planets resources
• Such as pollution, species decline and deforestation

Question 7

What is secondary green crime?

Answer 7

• Crimes that are a result of breaking existing laws and regulations

Question 8

How has green crime been affected by globalisation?

Answer 8

• Environmental chrime often crosses national boarder
• Often these issues are risks to the whole world which are manufactured by the way we organise society

Question 9

What are two reasons why green crime is seen as global crime?

Answer 9

1. The planet is a single ecosystem so it has a large effecr on the world
2. Green crime is carried out by powerful interests from transnational corporations

Question 10

What is a global risk society and how does it impact green crime?

Answer 10

• Environmental crime is the result of manufacturaed risks, we have new environemtal risks through technology and manufacturing

Question 11

What is examples of a global risk society?

Answer 11

1. Bhopal Disaster 1984 - Caused by multinational corporation seeking profit to cost cutting and ignoring safety
2. BP’s 2010 Oil Spill - Corporate negligence and inadequate safety measures
3. Volkswagen Emissions Scandal 2015 - Corporate fraud motivated by profit

Question 12

Who are perpetrators of green crime?

Answer 12

• Wolf argues that there a four perpetrators
  1. Individuals who have a cumulative effect
  2. Private businnesses who commit corporate crime
  3. States and governments, Santana argues that the military are the biggest institutional polluter due to bombs and toxic chemicals
  4. Organised crime, waste disposal

Question 13

Who are victims of green crime?

Answer 13

• Potter found that the working class and ethnic minorities are more likely to be victims of green crimes in developed and undeveloped countries which is enviromental racism

Question 14

What are the problems of policing green crime?

Answer 14

1. Laws that exist are shaped by powerful capitalist interest’s
2. It is hard to measure
3. International laws are difficult to construct
4. Lack of laws governing the environment
   - Sutherland found that laws and regulations of environmental offences are not enforced and tend to be fined rather than prosecuted

Question 15

What is an evaluation of green criminology?

Answer 15

• It is difficult to study as there is no agreed definition
• It is difficult to assess due to the long-term impact
• The research is based on case studies
• Green crime is too subjective due to a lack of agreed definitions