An international expert panel was assembled last November to define Ecocide and they have drawn up draft law. If successful, it could become the fifth crime against peace, next to war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression, all of which can be prosecuted in the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague.
The experts created a definition of ecocide as:
Article 8 ter Ecocide
1. For the purpose of this Statute, “ecocide” means 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 being caused by those acts.
2. For the purpose of paragraph 1:
a. “Wanton” means with reckless disregard for damage which would be clearly excessive in relation to the social and economic benefits anticipated;
b. “Severe” means damage which involves very serious adverse changes, disruptionThe result of an action that creates a sudden change in the stability of an ecosystem or process. This tends to create a gap where there is free surplus energy and organisms will move in to fill the space. Disruption might be a tree fall, or the application of pesticide to farmland. Disruption is important to maintain dynamics in ecosystems More or harm to any element of the environment, including grave impacts on human life or natural, cultural or economic resources;
c. “Widespread” means damage which extends beyond a limited geographic area, crosses state boundaries, or is suffered by an entire ecosystemHow ecosystems function An ecosystem is a community of lifeforms that interact in such an optimal way that how ecosystems function best, is when all components (including humans and other animals) can persist and live alongside each other for the longest time possible. Ecosystems are fuelled by the energy created by plants (primary producers) that convert the Sun's heat energy More or species or a large number of human beings;
d. “Long-term” means damage which is irreversible or which cannot be redressed through natural recovery within a reasonable period of time; e. “Environment” means the earth, its biosphere, cryosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere, as well as outer space.
The work, which was originally championed by the late Polly Higgins, has garnered considerable global support from leaders in Europe and further afield. It would be the first international crime to be added to the ICC’s portfolio in over 80 years. However, it will still take at least a two-thirds majority of States Parties (currently 82/123) to vote in favour of the amendment, if it’s to become law.
It’s argued that a separate ecocide law is needed to make crimes on the environment punishable in their own right but it’s uncertain what this might mean for wildlife.
