Research On Adding Potential Damage Offense In Our Environmental Criminal Legislation

With the rapid development of economy, the deterioration of the environment has become a serious threat to human existence and development, therefore, environmental protection becomes a hot topic in the world. After the experience of environmental hazards, many countries began to protect the environment by means of criminal law and added potential damage offense. The environmental crime of our country has been caused great damage, criminal law of the People’s Republic of China set the special section on environmental crime, but most of the provisions are the actual damage offense, which require to cause real harm results as a prerequisite for punishment. The environmental criminal legislation is unable to keep up with the growing environmental crime Phenomenon, therefore, the academic community calls for reference to foreign legislation to add environmental risks, hoping to intervene in the criminal law in advance to the environment in a dangerous state in order to punish crimes and protect the environment.This paper is divided into five parts:In the first part, the concepts of environmental crime and potential damage offense are defined, which provides theoretical support for the legislation of environmental crime.The second part, our country’s current serious pollution situation exposes the legislative issues. First, there is a elaborate explaination on our country’s environmental crime. Secondly, the environmental crime legislation of our country are described, this presents China’s environmental crime legislation can not adapt to the serious situation in environmental crime.Adding potential damage offense of necessity and feasibility was discussed in the third part. The characteristics of environmental crime, prevention principle and the construction of ecological civilization explain the necessity. No obstacles and "combining punishment with leniency" policy explains the feasibility.In the fourth part, Foreign environment is excellent, which has an exemplary role in the legislation.. Selecting the continental law system and Anglo American law, on behalf of the national environmental crime of potential damage offense in legislation,we can take example by them.The fifth part is the legislation suggestion of the environmental crime. Legislative proposals are put forward from three aspects:the change of China’s environmental crime legislation concept, the setting of the type of potential damage offence in China’s environmental crime and the addition of dangerous criminal offenses in our country.