Editorial - Crimes that affect the environment - biocentric foundations in the interpretation of environmental criminal law

Abstract

Crimes that impact the environment constitute special forms of criminal offences. Sometimes they are “street crimes” perpetrated by less well-off people. They are also called “blue collar crimes” in allusion to their historical roots linked to North American workers who at the beginning of the 20th century were known as “blue-collars”. However, as a rule, the masterminds behind these crimes hold economic power and/or political power and are positioned in the shadows, almost invisible, organizing   “white collar” criminal enterprise. In addition, Brazilian criminal law in general considers these crimes to be of lesser offensive potential, and normative elements of the type whose legal significance depends on a value judgment are often inserted in the process of legal nomogenesis; and the legislative technique of criminal norms or blank criminal laws is also usually employed. All this makes the work of interpretation more complex, and emphasizes the hermeneutical bases of interpretation. That is why the thematic dossier of this edition of the RBCP centers around Biocentrism as a middle ground between Anthropocentrism and Ecocentrism in order to highlight the supra-individual legal nature and the diffuse interests inherent in the legal interests concerning environmental criminal law. The interdisciplinary character of environmental law occasions contact with different areas of scientific knowledge. Thus the diversity of the themes of the articles making up this edition is highlighted, and reading these articles will lead to contact with different epistemic communities. What ties these elements together is the interpretation of criminal offenses which impact the environment from the perspective of Biocentrism.