Towards an effective enforcement of environmental criminal law : re-thinking sanctions for air pollution criminals in Iraq

Mahmood, IS

Abstract

This study aims at evaluating the effectiveness of the current legal framework of Iraqi air environment protection by identifying the many challenges confronting this framework and the obstacles which impede appropriate enforcement measures. One of the main issues is the overlap in Iraqi environmental laws which present judges with conflicting regulations as well as penalties which inadequately reflect the severity of the damage resulting from wilful breaches of the law. Conflicting laws also lead to lengthy delays in rectifying the misdemeanour and in limiting the damage being caused to the environment. The study reveals that inadequacy of enforcement frequently arises from current environment laws being subsumed by general law which lacks a specific focus on contemporary environmental realities.
The study aims at assessing the extent to which current criminal law provides an effective system for protecting the environment from air pollution crime and whether its current provisions are appropriate for the prevention and sufficiently punitive as a deterrent for the level of environmental crime committed.
Two principal issues are considered; first, the current criminal sanctions are critically evaluated to determine their effectiveness as enforcement instruments and alternative enforcement tools are considered; second, in those situations where criminal sanctions have a role to play, the thesis considers how their application can be improved to protect the environment.
The study concludes with the observation that Iraqi environmental criminal law is principally directed towards deterrence and considers alternatives to criminal penalties which may be more effective for protecting the environment. These alternatives may be preferable to current dependency on command and control which is the prevailing default approach. The imposition of criminal sanctions would then become more effective through being reserved for the most serious breaches.
The thesis adopted a qualitative research approach of a doctrinal nature which did not entail an empirical method but relied on the collection of data from primary and secondary sources.
This thesis can make a positive contribution to bridging the gap in environmental law formulation and also contribute to the specifically to an environmental criminal law of air pollution reform in Iraq, an area that has received comparatively little attention to date.

Citation

Mahmood, I. (in press). Towards an effective enforcement of environmental criminal law : re-thinking sanctions for air pollution criminals in Iraq. (Thesis). University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Acceptance Date: Apr 1, 2016
• Deposit Date: Aug 14, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 14, 2019
• Additional Information: Funders : Ministry of higher education and scientific research- University of Kirkuk-Iraq; Projects : MOHSR; Grant Number: 1467
• Award Date: Apr 1, 2019