환경규제의 집행 효과 제고에 관한 一考 -캐나다 환경집행법(Environmental Enforcement Act)을 중심으로-

Abstract

This article aims to find better alternatives to improve the environmental enforcement in Korea. A particular attention has been drawn to the Environmental Enforcement Act of Canada(hereinafter the “EEA”). The implementation of the EEA, passed in June 2009 has recently begun in three stages. The EEA is particularly interesting to be examined because it was intended and thus enacted to make the environmental enforcement regimes more consistent across all federal legislation. The EEA amended nine existing environmental statutes administered by then the Environmental Canada and Parks Canada, and it created a new act entitled the Environmental Violations Administrative Monetary Penalties Act. The ambitious statute standardized the enforcement and penalty regimes of nine federal environmental acts by introducing stiffer fines, new sentencing powers and considerations, and measures aimed at strengthening the government's ability to investigate and prosecute violations. Specifically, the EEA has increased maximum fine amounts, established minimum fines for certain offences, imposed liability on corporate directors and officers, and provided for sentencing guidance for courts by establishing principles and purposes of sentencing and also by identifying relevant aggravating factors that should be taken into account when determining sentence. The EEA has directed fines to the Environmental Damages Fund which funds community organizations in environmental restoration and research projects. Furthermore, the EEA has created a new statute, the Environmental Violations Administrative Monetary Penalties Act(hereinafter, the “EVAMP Act”) to establish a system of administrative monetary penalties for the enforcement of the nine amended Acts. The stated purpose in establishing this system is to provide an alternative to the penal system and to supplement existing measures to enforce the environmental Acts. In light of the abovementioned developments, this article, first, explains the detailed background and impetus to enact the EEA in Canada, and, next, examines the significance and specifics of the changes that this act brought to the enforcement landscape of the federal environmental regulation, and the sentencing regime. Furthermore, this article explains some contentious issues brought before the House of Commons in the course of legislating the EEA Bill and, lastly, it tries to draw some practical implications for the improvement of the Korean environmental enforcement system.