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Environmental Crime and Punishment: Empirical Evidence from the German Penal Code

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  • Christian Almer
  • Timo Goeschl

Abstract

U.S. and E.U. environmental policy employ criminal sanctions to enforce compliance. Recent moves toward revising their use are based on little empirical evidence as to their effectiveness. This paper exploits a unique dataset to study the deterrent effect of criminal enforcement. The dynamic panel data analysis leads to three findings. First, criminal sanctions do provide the intended deterrent effects. Second, standing trial provides one of the most significant deterrents, rather than the probability of conviction or the magnitude of fines. Third, public preferences regarding environmental quality and political economy variables affect reported environmental crime.

Suggested Citation

  • Christian Almer & Timo Goeschl, 2010. "Environmental Crime and Punishment: Empirical Evidence from the German Penal Code," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 86(4), pages 707-726.
    • Handle: RePEc:uwp:landec:v:86:y:2010:iv:1:p:707-726
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    Cited by:

    1. Andarge, Tihitina & Lichtenberg, Erik, 2018. "Regulated Firm Strategy under Uncertainty about Regulatory Status," 2018 Annual Meeting, August 5-7, Washington, D.C. 274420, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    2. Xun Cao & Qing Deng & Xiaojun Li & Zijie Shao, 2022. "Fine me if you can: Fixed asset intensity and enforcement of environmental regulations in China," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(4), pages 983-1004, October.
    3. Júlia Gallego Ziero Uhr & André Luis Squarize Chagas, Daniel de Abreu Pereira Uhr, Renan Porn Peres, 2017. "A study on environmental infractions for Brazilian municipalities: a spatial dynamic panel approach," Working Papers, Department of Economics 2017_13, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP).
    4. Sjöberg, Eric & Xu, Jing, 2018. "An Empirical Study of US Environmental Federalism: RCRA Enforcement From 1998 to 2011," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 253-263.
    5. Blankenberg, Ann-Kathrin & Alhusen, Harm, 2019. "On the determinants of pro-environmental behavior: A literature review and guide for the empirical economist," University of Göttingen Working Papers in Economics 350, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics, revised 2019.
    6. Dmitri V. Vinogradov & Elena V. Shadrina, 2018. "Discouragement through incentives," Working Papers 2018_05, Business School - Economics, University of Glasgow.
    7. Alm, James & Shimshack, Jay, 2014. "Environmental Enforcement and Compliance: Lessons from Pollution, Safety, and Tax Settings," Foundations and Trends(R) in Microeconomics, now publishers, vol. 10(4), pages 209-274, December.
    8. Francesco Silvestri, 2019. "Direct and indirect effects of EU Self Sufficiency Principle on Municipal Waste Management: A theoretical approach," ECONOMIA PUBBLICA, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2019(1), pages 89-98.
    9. Zifang Ding & Xiang Gao & Xuesong Qian & Huanhuan Wang, 2022. "Governmental inspection and local legislation on environmental protection: Evidence from China," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(3), pages 728-763, July.
    10. Tihitina Andarge & Erik Lichtenberg, 2020. "Regulatory compliance under enforcement gaps," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 57(3), pages 181-202, June.
    11. Alessio D'Amato & Massimiliano Mazzanti & Francesco Nicolli & Mariangela Zoli, 2014. "Illegal Waste Disposal, Territorial Enforcement and Policy. Evidence from regional data," SEEDS Working Papers 0314, SEEDS, Sustainability Environmental Economics and Dynamics Studies, revised Feb 2014.
    12. Gupta, Shreekant & Saksena, Shalini & Baris, Omer F., 2019. "Environmental enforcement and compliance in developing countries: Evidence from India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 313-327.
    13. Pierre Bentata, 2014. "Liability as a complement to environmental regulation: an empirical study of the French legal system," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 16(3), pages 201-228, July.
    14. Wayne B. Gray & Jay P. Shimshack, 2011. "The Effectiveness of Environmental Monitoring and Enforcement: A Review of the Empirical Evidence," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 5(1), pages 3-24, Winter.
    15. Carlo Reggiani & Francesco Silvestri, 2018. "Municipal Solid Waste, Market Competition and the EU Policy," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 71(2), pages 457-474, October.
    16. Ran An & Tian Sang, 2022. "The Guarantee Mechanism of China’s Environmental Protection Strategy from the Perspective of Global Environmental Governance—Focusing on the Punishment of Environmental Pollution Crime in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-16, November.
    17. Sun, Meng, 2019. "The effect of border controls on waste imports: Evidence from China's Green Fence campaign," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 457-472.
    18. Dell'Anno, Roberto & Pergolizzi, Antonio & Pittiglio, Rosanna & Reganati, Filippo, 2020. "Waste crime in Italian Regions: A Structural Equation Approach," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    19. Dmitri V. Vinogradov & Elena V. Shadrina, 2018. "Discouragement through incentives," Working Papers 2018-05, Business School - Economics, University of Glasgow.
    20. Corinna Claus & Ekkehard A. Köhler & Tim Krieger, 2022. "Can Moral Reminders Curb Corruption? Evidence from an Online Classroom Experiment," CESifo Working Paper Series 9670, CESifo.
    21. Baraldi, Anna Laura & Cantabene, Claudia & De Iudicibus, Alessandro, 2023. "Fighting crime for improved recycling: evaluating an anti-mafia policy on source separation of waste," MPRA Paper 120296, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    22. Zhifang Zhou & Lingyan Zhang & Li Lin & Huixiang Zeng & Xiaohong Chen, 2020. "Carbon risk management and corporate competitive advantages: “Differential promotion” or “cost hindrance”?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 1764-1784, May.
    23. Alessio D'Amato & Massimiliano Mazzanti & Francesco Nicolli, 2011. "Waste Sustainability, Environmental Management and Mafia: Analysing Geographical and Economic Dimensions," CEIS Research Paper 213, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 24 Oct 2011.
    24. Anna Rita Germani & Antonio Pergolizzi & Filippo Reganati, 2015. "Law Enforcement and Illegal Trafficking of Waste: Evidence from Italy," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 35(4), pages 2673-2684.
    25. Jay P. Shimshack, 2014. "The Economics of Environmental Monitoring and Enforcement," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 339-360, October.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • K11 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Property Law
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling

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