Building the Water Crimes Inventory

Reliable crime statistics are critical for measuring changes in crime levels, monitoring state responses to crime, evaluating policies and understanding the various facets of crime in different contexts, but no data on water offences is available nowadays. Water has no boundaries, therefore the protection of this natural element from any harm and damage to human beings and the environment should be approached in a uniform and coordinated way at the international level. Different data, different formats, different classification, and different assessment processes lead to a lack of interoperability among police forces and to recording water crimes under other offences. Moreover, without an inventory, no reliable estimates can be obtained concerning the number and the impact of offences against water. To solve this problem, existing approaches to crime classification were analysed in order to understand their capacity to identify and collect information on water crimes and, eventually, to find ways to overcome existing limitations. The International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes (ICCS) was used and tested, because it provides a framework for the systematic production and comparison of statistical data across different criminal justice institutions and jurisdictions, based on internationally agreed concepts, definitions and principles. The test has revealed some critical issues, chief among which is that much information about water is lost in the data collection process. Information about the type of water (e.g. freshwater, marine water), the service stage involved (e.g. impoundment, treatment, abstraction), or the intended use (e.g. agricultural, for human consumption, recreational) are not accounted for in the ICCS system. In order to overcome this limitation, the real or potential water crime cases collected have been classified along seven main categories (threats): (1) Water corruption; (2) Water organized crime, (3) Water pollution; (4) Water theft; (5) Water fraud; (6) Water terrorism; (7) Water cyber-attacks.