OSLO, April 5 (Xinhua) -- The Norwegian government said Friday that it would increase the penalties related to several environmental laws in order to fight against environmental crimes.
The government has proposed strengthening the penalties in the Pollution Control Act, the Nature Diversity Act, the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act and the Product Control Act, the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment said in a statement.
These laws regulate pollution from industry, waste management, production and sales of products and use and protection of nature on the Norway's mainland and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard.
A legislative proposition has been sent to the Norwegian parliament to promote increasing penalties from three years to five years for serious violations of the Nature Diversity Act and the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act.
An increased penalty of three years is introduced in the Product Control Act. Similarly, the government has proposed that an increased penalty in the Pollution Control Act would be raised from two years to three years.
Ordinary penalties related to the Pollution Control Act and the Product Control Act are proposed to be raised from three months to one year.
In addition, the government will also introduce the possibility of using a violation fee, which means the administration may demand a person or entity to pay a monetary sum to the public due to legal offense.
"Environmental crime is a threat both to people and the environment around us. We increase the penalty limits in important environmental laws and introduce the possibility of using a violation fee," Minister of Climate and Environment Ola Elvestuen was quoted as saying.
"This will strengthen enforcement and compliance with the regulations. We do this to reduce the risk of damage to nature, the environment and health," he said.
