Environmental criminals and polluters could soon be slapped with lengthy jail terms and hefty fines under a government crackdown aimed at stemming rampant 'green crime' in Italy.
The cabinet approved a draft law on Tuesday which would introduce prison sentences of up to ten years and fines of up to 250,000 euros for the most serious offences, including causing an environmental disaster and trafficking or dumping radioactive and nuclear waste.
The five-article bill, drawn up by Environment Minister Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio and Justice Minister Clemente Mastella, also targets the so-called 'eco-Mafia': organised crime rings which illegally traffic and dump waste.
According to top Italian environmental association Legambiente, waste trafficking nets the Mafia and other criminal organisations some 23 billion euros a year.
Crime groups have developed sophisticated businesses that traffic rubbish via complex procedures and forged documents.
The draft law not only punishes mafiosi caught illegally trading, possessing, discharging or burying refuse but also those found to have helped cover up such crimes by falsely labelling or classifying the waste.
It also introduces a range of new, criminally punishable offences, such as unlawful damage to a protected habitat and hampering inspections by law enforcers.
Polluters will be able to avoid prison if they voluntarily clean up the damage they have caused.
At the moment in Italy, environmental criminals can earn big profits while facing little risk of detection and light penalities if caught.
THREE GREEN CRIMES COMMITTED PER HOUR.
According to Legambiente, three crimes against the environment are committed every hour.
In 2006, almost 24,000 environmental crimes were uncovered by police, almost half of them in the four southern regions of Sicily, Calabria, Puglia and Campania where Italy's mafia groups are traditionally strongest.
A recent satellite survey found about 100 illegal rubbish dumps in Campania alone and health checks have shown the presence of toxic materials may have already had an impact on the health of the local population.
Pecoraro Scanio hailed the bill as a "breakthrough" in the fight against the eco-Mafia.
"Finally the eco-Mafia will be treated as environmental crime and duly punished. Up until now, we haven't had the legal tools to battle this sort of crime effectively," the minister said.
Justice Minister Mastella said that "this is a very important law. We hope it is widely supported in parliament and swiftly approved".
The European Union is also planning to crack down on polluters, with nine sets of offences which it wants approved and recognised across the 27-member bloc.
Maximum penalties for the most serious offences would be jail terms of up to ten years and fines of 1.5 million euros.
Such offences would include "crimes that have resulted in death or serious injury of a person or a substantial damage to air, soil, water, animal or plants, or when the offence has been committed by a criminal organisation".
However, the plan, presented earlier this month, is likely to run into opposition in some countries that are keen to defend their right to determine penalties for criminal offences.
Pecoraro Scanio said on Tuesday that the Italian bill would probably be approved before the EU directive comes into force.
"We are ahead of time," he said.
