On Modern Environmental Police System

Environmental police system is the general term for a series of legal system, on which within the scope of their statutory duties, by exercising police power, the environmental police authority and environmental police implement sanctions against those who commit illegal acts in the field of environmental and resources protection, investigating crimes of in this field. The establishment of an environmental police system in a country is the inevitable result of the economy, society and environmental protection's developing to a certain level in this country. The establishment and enforcement of environmental police system is also an important measure for curbing the increasingly serious illegal and criminal acts destructing the environment and resources protection.Starting from the exploration and demonstration of the environment protection function by modern police, combined with the trend of state environmental governance, the research on modern environmental police system puts forward that the ecological police power is the sublimation of the function of modern police protecting environment, and will become the basis of establishing the environmental police system. However, in our country, the legislation on environmental law enforcement by police being scattered, and the legislation on establishing environmental police system being vacant, these lead to people's worry about the environmental protection is being intervened by police. From the theoretical basis of its establishment to the practices at home and abroad, this paper conducts its research on the environmental police system. Seen from the origin of the police, and the basic and special functions of police authority, the modern police and police power play a specific role in the state environmental protection which is different from any other law-enforcing subject and power——by virtue of the mandatory functions of police power, the modern police could control the environmental infraction and crime, to ensure environmental safety and order. The responsibility of the modern police is closely related to the environment safety, order and the rights of citizens. And the environmental protection function of the police in China can be traced back to the late Qing Dynasty, the initial period of modem police. Nevertheless, it changes with the times, reflecting the functional difference in different historical background. It has experienced a process from germination to development step by step.Nowadays, along with our country to vigorously promote the state governance system and the modernization process of its administrating ability,standing in the state ecological governance height, in order to construct the ecological civilization society,we shall make full use of the role of the police. By exploiting the special conditions of police organ itself in environmental protection, removing the prejudice and doubt on the police power, we can make full use of the irreplaceable role of the police power in environmental protection. The ecological police power is the sublimation of the function of modem police protecting environment. It is a trend of China's police development, is also the requirement of the times to protect the ecological environment,accompanying national ecological civilization construction, its specific performance being in the follow aspects: the value orientation of the police power, the subject exercising the power, the power configuration and operation, etc. It has laid the foundation for the establishment of environmental police system in China.This paper also investigates the environment law enforcement practice by police in China and the status quo of police power's being exercised in environment protection abroad. Having analyzed the present situation of environmental law enforcement by police in China, especially investigated the experiments in establishing environmental police force and its positive role in some provinces,the author points out the achievements and the problem in reality, putting forward his feasible approach to solve these problems. Moreover, the author introduces the status quo of environmental law enforcement by virtue of police power in America, European countries, Russia and some developing countries. From this above, in terms of their different forms of state structure, historical development backgrounds,economic developments and environmental protection situations, these countries have different characteristics of environmental police system, responsibility and law enforcement means. However, whether in Europe, America, and Russia or in the developing countries,the police power plays a positive role in environmental protection. This also provides us a beneficial enlightenment that in China, we should establish environmental police system, ensuring that the police play their positive role in environmental protection.The ultimate destination of this paper is to establish environmental police system in China. On the basis of the theoretical research and practice investigation on the functions of the police in environmental protection, it suggests establishing environmental police system in China. In the first instance, this paper discusses the nature of environmental police system, holding that the environmental police system is a historical category, a relationship category, a norm category, then discussing the objectivity and subjectivity of environmental police system. In respect to its objectivity, this paper mainly discusses that it is of objective necessity to establish the environmental police system under the condition of modern society, as well as of objective independence in comparison with any other system. And in regard to its subjectivity, it discusses that the environmental police system is of selectiveness and design. Then this paper puts forward its preliminary conception of environmental police system in China. The main ideas of this paper are as follows:Firstly, the modern police authority is the legal obligator of national environmental protection. Police authority, as an important functional department of the government, plays an indispensable role in the environmental protection, whose responsibilities of state environmental protection mainly manifests in its supervising and sanctioning obligations, i.e. by means of its mandatory function, the police power, curbing the environmental law violations and crime, ensuring environmental safety and order.Secondly, in China, the environmental protection function of the police can be traced back to the late Qing Dynasty, the initial period of modern police. From the time of the establishment of modern police system, the police had the corresponding environmental protection function. Nevertheless, this function changes with the times, reflecting functional differences in different historical background. It has experienced a process from germination to development step by step.Thirdly, in our country, the responsibility of the police and national environment protection are correlative to each other. With the evolution of the concept of national security, the police shall incorporate safeguarding national environmental security into its responsibility of maintaining national security. Besides, safeguarding environmental order should also become an important part of maintaining public order, which is also correlative to social public order.Fourthly, the ecological police power is an important embodiment of the modernization of contemporary state environmental governance. This is the result of the penetration and extension of ecological concept into the field of the police law enforcement. Its purpose is to safeguard national environmental security,environmental order and protect the citizen's environment right Fifthly, in China, the environmental police system is indispensable in environmental regulatory system. The role of police and police power in the national environmental governance is irreplaceable. In addition, the environmental police system is an important part of the specialization of environmental jurisdiction.