• Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
The Truth at Any Cost.
Qui Tam, Compliance and Anti-Corruption News.
SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
Whistleblower Network News
  • Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
No Result
View All Result
Home False Claims-Qui Tam

Citizens impacted by environmental crime can help stop it. But, they need support and protection.

Tinker ReadybyTinker Ready
June 21, 2019
in False Claims-Qui Tam, Foreign Corruption, News, Wildlife Whistleblowers
Reading Time: 4 mins read
Have We Learned Anything From the Extinction of the Vaquita?
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInEmail

Citizens and activists can help stop environmental crime, but they need to know which laws apply, how to collect evidence and when to get a lawyer.

Different approaches to the role of citizens in collecting and reporting evidence of environmental crime were discussed last week by a three panelists at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington, DC.

In many cases, there is no meaningful law enforcement to stop environmental crimes. That’s where citizens can come in.

Support Whistleblower Network News

By understanding how to collect evidence and navigate whistleblower programs, anyone can help enforce environmental laws. Anyone includes, NGO staff, those impacted by crime or insiders, such as cruise ship crews.

John Kostyack, director of National Whistleblower Center, talked about a range of existing federal laws with provisions that reward citizens who come forward with credible information about environmental crime. Shaun Goho of the environmental law clinic at Harvard Law School talked about how the courts are likely to interpret evidence and expert testimony. Stevie Lewis of the Public Laboratory for Open Technology and Science said the EPA has been slow to act on the recommendations in a 2016 report on promoting citizen science. But, her group hasn’t.

Kostyack started his talk with a slide of a small, endangered porpoise known as the vaquita, according to a video of the event.

“It’s really a fitting symbol of what we’re up against,” he said. “The forces that are driving this beautiful animal to extinction in its home in the Gulf of California are the same forces that are driving much of the environmental devastation around the world and those are the forces of crime.”

Environmental crime is highly profitable and there is an absence of meaningful law enforcement, he said. The vaquitas get caught up in the nets of fishing crews looking for totoaba, a fish that brings a high price in China, where its bladder is considered a delicacy.

Kostyack said persuasion and economic incentives –the tools conservationist routinely turn to — don’t really work in this context. But there are other ways to go after criminal cartels “and folks who commit crimes from corporate suites who are the ones who wear the suits and carry out corrupt activities on behalf of certain multinational companies.”

He went through a list of laws with whistleblower provision that can be effective against wildlife crime, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), which targets bribery of foreign government officials and the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS). Using the latter, a whistleblower was able to provide evidence of illegal dumping by Princess cruise ships.

These whistleblowers are heroes, but they need to be aware of and protected from the inevitable blowback they will face, Kostyack said.

While it is not possible to completely eliminate risk, any decision about whether to step forward should include a discussion of how to minimize risk and maintain anonymity, he said. That means using the attorney-client privilege, taking advantage of encryption technology for communications and weighing the benefit of approaching the media.

Kostyack urged those considering this approach to consult a lawyer because whistleblower law can be extremely complicated.

Shaun Goho of the environmental law clinic at the Harvard Law School said evidence has to be collected by citizens in a way that will be accepted by the courts.

“If you bring you in case, you have to have some confidence in the reliability of the data that is the basis for your claim,” he said.

For example, courts may accept testimony from citizens who testify about visible pollutants or well-known odors, he said.

“Conversely, a court is more likely to say you need to be an expert if you’re talking about things like samples taken to measure invisible polluters,” Goho said.

Stevie Lewis of the Public Lab talked about how her group has been working with those affected by environmental crime. She urged others to build relationships with citizens based on equity and to honor different types of “expertise, local knowledge and experience.”

After working with local residents on the BP oil spill cleanup, the Public Lab staff considered how to duplicate and improve that approach. For example, environmental pollution challenges that people face can be complex. Many citizens lack access to tools and methodology because of the top-down nature of the scientific process, she said: “So, we… think about systems that are receptive to grassroots and round-up citizen data collection.”

The event was co-sponsored by the International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement, Environmental Law Institute, and National Whistleblower Center

Tags: Act to Prevent Pollution From ShipsFalse Claims/Qui TamForeign Corrupt Practices ActWildlife Whistleblowers
Previous Post

Changing the way we think about whistleblowers: Social media gifs offer support

Next Post

After charges, police raids, Australia looks to improve whistleblower protections.

Tinker Ready

Tinker Ready

In 2019, Tinker Ready was the editor-in-chief of the Whistleblower Protection Blog.  She has worked with whistleblowers throughout her career as a journalist and investigative reporter.  

Next Post
After charges, police raids, Australia looks to improve whistleblower protections.

After charges, police raids, Australia looks to improve whistleblower protections.

Please login to join discussion

Receive Daily Alerts

Subscribe to receive daily breaking news and legislative developments sent to your inbox.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Most Popular

US Attorneys Reflect on UK’s Whistleblowing Awareness Week

OSHA Highlights Railroad Worker Whistleblower Protections in Wake of Train Derailments

AML Whistleblower Law Could Shift the Way DOJ Handles Whistleblowers

Two Powerful Women Whistleblower Pairs to Learn From This Women’s History Month

WNN Exclusive Interview with Social Security Whistleblowers Sarah Carver and Jennifer Griffith — Part 2

Change the Culture, Make National Whistleblower Day Permanent

Whistleblower Poll

Whistleblower Poll
Whistleblower Poll

Exclusive Marist Poll: Overwhelming Public Support Among Likely Voters For Increased Whistleblower Protections

byGeoff Schweller
October 6, 2020

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

STAY INFORMED.
Subscribe to receive breaking whistleblower updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About Us

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Careers

Subscribe

  • Daily Mail
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • YouTube Channel

Contribute

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Reprint Guidelines

Your Experience

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Help

  • The Whistleblowers Handbook
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Advertise
Whistleblower Network News

Whistleblower Network News is an independent online newspaper providing our readers with up-to-date information on whistleblowing. Our goal is to be the best source of information on important qui tam, anti-corruption, compliance, and whistleblower law developments. 

Submit an Article

Copyright © 2021, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

This Newspaper/Web Site is made available by the publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this website, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Newspaper/Web Site publisher. The Newspaper/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.

SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Exclusives
  • Government
    • False Claims-Qui Tam
    • Federal Employees
    • Intelligence
  • Corporate
    • CFTC & Commodities
    • Dodd-Frank
    • IRS & Tax
    • SEC & Securities
  • Features
  • Legislation
  • International
    • Foreign Corruption
  • Rewards
  • Whistleblower of the Week
  • Environment & Climate
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Employment
    • Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers
    • Retaliation
    • OSHA
  • Media
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • National Whistleblower Day
  • Whistleblower Poll
  • Whistleblower Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Resources for Locating An Attorney
    • The New Whistleblowers Handbook
  • National Whistleblower Day ’23

Copyright © 2020, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

Become a Whistleblower Network News Subscriber

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Subscribe to WNN

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Subscribe to WNN

Add New Playlist

Go to mobile version