Select Committee on Environmental Audit Written Evidence


APPENDIX 12

Memorandum from the Tarka Foundation

  1.   The Tarka Foundation is a company limited by guarantee as a social enterprise to support the natural, social and economic environment.

  2.   Urban Mines is a not-for-profit environmental body committed to finding practical, innovative solutions for resource management in a manner which values people and which respects the planet. Working with the public and private sectors the aim of Urban Mines is to provide information, advice, support, direction and financial solutions to problems.

  3.  In response to the Environmental Audit Committee's request for memoranda from interested organisations relating to the above matter we submit as an annex details of a proposal made early in 2002 for pilot investigations that include some of the issues raised. We have submitted details of the proposal in order that the Environmental Audit Committee may be aware of our interest, the scope of the suggested pilot project and that social enterprises, working with statutory and other bodies, are potentially in a strong position to offer support in the Government's fight against anti-social behaviour in general and in this instance, environmental crime in particular.

  4.  It should be expressly noted that our submission is not in any way a criticism of the Minister, his officials or other public bodies to whom it was submitted or of the way in which the proposal was treated by the Minister, his officials or others to whom it was submitted.

January 2004

Annex

ENVIRONMENTAL CRIME PROPOSAL

1.  RATIONALE

  2.  On 5 February 2002 the Associate Parliamentary Sustainable Waste Group, organised a half-day forum entitled: Environmental Crime Britain's Next Threat? Speakers, including The Rt Hon Michael Meacher MP Minister for the Environment and Baroness Young, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, expressed concerns regarding the increased incidence of environmental crimes and the costs in environmental, social and financial terms.

  3.  Following the Forum, Representatives from The Tarka Foundation, Urban Mines and Birmingham City Council met to discuss the formation of a working partnership to carry out three pilots to investigate key issues as they relate to:

    (a)

    Rural areas including some of the Indices of Deprivation's worse wards.

    (b)

    Northern urban/city areas with high levels of deprivation and.

    (c)

    A central city area with a rising and vibrant culture.

  4.  From the meetings and subsequent discussions with the police and other interested parties with experience of different types of behaviours and circumstances that may be partly responsible for creating a range of environmental crimes, a number of key questions were raised:

    (a)

    What is the definition of environmental crime? Is it moral, legal or a mixture of both?

    (b)

    How widespread is environmental crime?

    (c)

    Is there sufficient public or judiciary understanding about environmental crime and its implications?

    (d)

    Do those who commit environmental crimes see themselves as criminals?

    (e)

    Are there links between environmental crime and other forms of anti-social behaviour?

    (f)

    What measures need to be taken to address the problem?

  5.  Growth of environmental crime and other forms of anti-social behaviour have a number of common denominators which are not always directly related to financial gain or benefits to the perpetrators, in some instances being more closely linked to a lack of care. In some cases serious damage can result for a basic lack of understanding, this is particularly so when those committing environmental crimes are outside their usual environment. (As an example, a study among 13-18 year old city dwellers indicated that less than 1% had an understanding or in some cases any care of the implications of litter to rural areas).

  6.  A proposal was submitted to the office of the then Minister for the Environment requesting funds for the three pilot programmes to be carried out to measure the scale of the problem as well as to provide the basis for practical and achievable implementation of ideas and reduction schemes. This implementation of recommended strategies phase was seen as integral to the proposal in order to measure the usefulness of potential responses to the growing problem of environmental crime. This phase would also provide robust recommendations that can then be utilised by those involved with land management generally.

  7.  Regrettably the request for funding, without which the proposal could not proceed, was not successful and with no financial support forthcoming none of the organisations were able to commit more of their limited budgets to continuing discussions or undertaking the project.

  8.  A summary of the original proposal is given below.

9.  PROPOSAL

10.  PHASE 1:

11.   Definition and Classification of environmental crime

  12.  This Phase will seek to define and classify environmental crimes and their implications to the natural, social and economic environment. Phase 1: to determine the shape of subsequent phases and be based upon consultations with relevant stakeholders and a review of available information. Definition and classification of environmental crime will allow a more precise analysis and a differentiation of practical options.

13.  PHASE 2:

Case Studies

  14.  This continues from Phase 1 and would initially define the research scope to include:

  15.  Continuing literature review.

  16.  Survey work of the case study areas based on best practices utilising mapping to show the incidence of environmental crime spatially and temporally in relation to current land-use patterns.

  17.  Analysis of best practice in the UK and overseas (including, where possible, a cost benefit analysis of deterrent systems).

  18.  A secondary consultation phase with offenders (both individuals and corporate) and victims including land owners, National Park officers, local residents and visitors.

  19.  An examination of institutional and other barriers currently restricting the efficient control/reduction of environmental crime.

  20.  This part of Phase 2 to also look at strategies for combating environmental crime and draw up the plans for the practical implementation of recommended practices to reduce environmental crime and its effects.

21.  PHASE 3:

  22.  Cost benefits analysis of the recommended practices implemented and a final report with recommendations as to the most effective control measures to deal with environmental crime.

  23.  The low costs for the work are because two of the organisations are social enterprises with broad environmental interests and as such are able to undertake this type of work without the need for a profit factor.





 
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