Environmental regimes can entail a variety of policies and approaches to promote their effectiveness. Some of these include:
- Legal tools [see Guideline 40
], including
- Command-and-control approaches
- Responsive regulation
- Liability
- Economic tools [see Guideline 41(g)], including
- Voluntary tools
In establishing the environmental enforcement regime, a State can utilise the enforcement pyramid to tailor enforcement responses to the severity of the offence:
- Advice, persuasion, information, and compliance assistance
- Negotiation and settlement
- Inspections and examinations
- Notices and warning letters (administrative penalties)
- Civil penalties
- Criminal penalties (with both corporate and individual criminal liability, including imprisonment)
- License suspension
- License revocation, closure, and other more permanent measures
For more information on penalties and sanctions, see Guideline 40(c) and accompanying text.