The Environmental Enforcement in the Civil and the Common Law Systems. A Case on the Economic Effects of Legal Institutions

This paper aims to give a comparative analysis on the different enforcement approaches in respect to both civil and common law systems (i.e. Europe vs. USA) by analyzing some crucial aspects of their underlying normative systems. Therefore, the role of the juridical institutions in these two diverse contexts is analyzed, in order to identify the economic efficiency implications based upon the theory of public enforcement of environmental laws.environmental enforcement, economic analysis of law, common law, civil law.

Law Enforcement and Illegal Trafficking of Waste: Evidence from Italy

The illegal trafficking of waste has become one of the fastest growing areas of crime and one of the most lucrative industries among organized criminal activities, which has infiltrated both the Italian urban and hazardous waste management cycle. In this study, we aim to investigate the determinants of the organized activities for the illegal trafficking of waste (art. 260 of the Environmental Code) using waste, economic, and enforcement data in a panel analysis over the period 2002-2013. Our main findings reveal that in most of the Italian regions enforcement activities do not exert significant deterrence on criminal behaviors; a negative relationship between enforcement and illegal trafficking of waste can be identified only for very high levels of enforcement efforts. Moreover, we find that the major determinants of the illegal trafficking of waste rate differ between northern-central and southern regions, confirming the existence of a regional dualism. In particular, while in the North-Centre area the crime rate is positively related to level of education and negatively to the adoption of environmentally sound policies, in southern regions the organized activities for the illegal trafficking are negatively related to the education attainment and positively to the endowment of waste management plants

Investigating Discretionary Environmental Enforcement: a pilot experiment

In this work, we conducted a laboratory experiment in order to test the findings of a theoretical environmental enforcement model played as a strategic game where the firm’s behavior is influenced by the course of actions discretionally undertaken by both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Our experimental findings suggest that the presence of the DOJ can be counterproductive in increasing social welfare, since it implies solely additional enforcement costs, which, in turn, might reduce the probability of conducting inspections by the EPA without affecting the probability of firm’s compliance.classroom experiments, environmental enforcement, environmental economics

Discretionary Enforcement and Strategic Interactions Between Firms, Regulatory Agency and Justice Department: A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation

This paper presents a game theoretic morphological analysis of the U.S. environmental authorities’ (i.e., EPA and DOJ) behavioural mechanisms, based on strategic interactions among the players. The models explore the role of discretion that such authorities enjoy, either in deciding how to pursue environmental violations (investigative and prosecutorial discretion) or in judging them (judicial discretion). The purpose is to identify both the optimal firms’ behaviour in terms of compliance, and the DOJ’s and EPA’s optimal strategies in terms of enforcement actions to undertake. Consistent with the setting of the game theory models, the role of EPA and DOJ in deterring firms from polluting is, then, empirically tested, by means of a laboratory experiment. Laboratory evidence on compliance behaviour of firms when faced with enforcement conditions predicted by the theoretical models set up is discussed for the different experimental treatments performed

Political ecology of health in the Land of Fires: a hotspot of environmental crimes in the south of Italy

Environmental crimes, if they are perceived as victimless, have not received the appropriate governmental response and have been frequently ranked low on the law enforcement priority list, punished with lenient or no administrative sanctions. This has contributed to an underestimation of the immediate consequences of environmental crimes, which can go undetected for lengthy periods. On the contrary, the mismanagement and illegal trafficking of waste in the Land of Fires, an area in the Campania region in the South of Italy, has been experienced as a 'victimful' crime. Using a political ecology of health approach, and integrating qualitative and quantitative methods, we investigate how the perception of being a victim of waste-related environmental crimes has been magnified by evidence of serious disease outcomes . Health concerns have become a central issue in the resurgence of grassroots movements against waste mismanagement in Campania

Criminal Sanctions for Agricultural Violations of the Clean Water Act

Public enforcement of the Clean Water Act (CWA) has been characterized by the increased use of criminal sanctions over the past decade. This sanctioning trend has developed in direct response to the passage of the Sentencing Reform Act (SRA) as part of the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984. New sentencing guidelines were established in 1987 under which courts were required to impose sentences which reflect the seriousness of the offense, provide just punishment for the offense, and afford adequate deterrence to criminal conduct. Legal trends are documented for both industrial and agricultural violations as a result of applying the new federal sentencing guidelines to CWA cases. The efficiency implications of the SRA are evaluated in the context of a model of the public enforcement of environmental law. It is concluded that fault-based standards of liability and the use of mixed fine/incarceration sanctions are appropriate for agricultural violations of the CWA.Elsevier - Paper presented at the 43rd Annual Conference of the Western Social Science Association - Reno (Nevada) 18 to 21 April 200

Air Pollution and Migration in Italy: An Empirical Investigation at Provincial Level

Human mobility in relation to climate change and environmental degradation has been gaining increasing prominence in public and policy debates. Though many factors can come into play on mobility decisions, it is suggested that the increased concerns with environmental risks may be influential in shaping internal and external migration pattern