NCJ Number
178081
Journal
American Criminal Law Review Volume: 36 Issue: 3 Dated: Summer 1999 Pages: 515-592
Date Published
1999
Length
78 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the nine main laws covering Federal environmental offenses and the enforcement of Federal environmental regulations through criminal prosecution, with emphasis on liability, defenses, sentencing, and other issues common to most of the laws and on the unique features of each.
Abstract
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, a set of amendments reinforcing the Federal Solid Waste Disposal Act, imposes criminal penalties on persons who improperly transport, store, or treat hazardous wastes. The Toxic Substances Control Act concerns the manufacture, processing, and distribution or disposal of chemicals that pose danger to the public or the environment. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act regulates the manufacture, registration, transportation, sale, and use of toxic pesticides. Additional laws include the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act; the Clean Air Act; the Safe Drinking Water Act; the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899; and the Endangered Species Act. Most of these laws contain overlapping civil, criminal, and administrative penalty provisions. Congress has elevated some violations from misdemeanors to felonies over time and has increased potential jail sentences and fines for those convicted. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enforces the criminal provisions of nearly all these laws in conjunction with the Department of Justice (DOJ). The EPA and DOJ consider several factors in deciding whether to prosecute criminals for a violation of a Federal environmental law. Footnotes