Eco Police Officers Bust Environmental Offenders

Looking at these police officers, you might think they’re from the Parks Department or some tiny town in Texas. Brooklyn business owners look at their olive green uniforms and Stetson hats and know immediately that they’re not city brass. But these aren’t visiting officers from another state – they’re an environmental police force whose job is find and prosecute environmental offenders, and they’re very serious about what they do.

From The New York Times:

As a member of a small force of police officers whose sole focus is enforcing environmental laws, Officer Stevens carries a gun and handcuffs and can haul a suspect off to jail. These environmental conservation officers number barely 20 in New York City, out of about 300 around the state, but issue about 2,000 summonses for violations and criminal charges annually.

Created in 1880, when they were known as “game protectors” and watched over game and fish, these eco-police officers are now part of the State Department of Environmental Conservation and have become more prominent in recent years as public consciousness about the role of pollution in global warming has grown. They now answer complaints and respond to dispatchers’ calls in addition to carrying out spot inspections and longer investigations.

Over two shifts this month, Officer Stevens responded to incidents ranging from fuel spilled from a tanker truck involved in a traffic accident in the Bronx to a store’s refusal to redeem the deposit on cans and bottles.

Other offenses that Officer Stevens has dealt with include leaking antifreeze and oil at a mechanic, clouds of blue smoke coming from a flatbed truck and Chinatown fish markets selling undersize fish, which is illegal because it undermines efforts to keep fish populations stable.

The EPA has its own environmental police force, but in recent years, its numbers have declined steadily. Some communities have volunteers that essentially do the same work, while in others, city workers with little authority are the only people keeping track of environmental offenses.

It seems like having uniformed officers that look “official” would be more effective. It would be nice to see more cities use this method of controlling pollution and other problems, but with state budgets dwindling across the board, it may not happen for a while. Still, it’s nice to know these guys are out there.

Link [The New York Times]
Photo credit: Freaking News

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