Pungent Sound: Analyzing the Criminal Enforcement of Environmental Law in the Pacific Northwest

Abstract

Violations of environmental law involving significant harm or culpable conduct may require the application of criminal enforcement tools to punish offenders and deter future offences. Yet, we know very little about how this enforcement apparatus has operated historically in the Pacific Northwest. We undertake content analysis of all 2,588 environmental criminal prosecutions resulting from EPA criminal investigations from 1983-2019. We select and analyze all 230 prosecutions adjudicated in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, with the goals of understanding charging and sentencing patterns, as well as drawing out the broader themes that define such prosecutions over the last 37 years. We find that over $125 million in monetary penalties were assessed to defendants , as was some 753 years of probation, 139 years of incarceration, and over 10,000 hours of community service. Forty-three percent of prosecutions focused on water pollution, 18% hazardous waste, 10% air pollution, and 24% on state-level offences. We conclude with suggestions for bolstering the criminal enforcement apparatus in the name of strengthening the substance of environmental laws in the region, including greater resources, public salience, and community policing.