by Daniel J. Gansle

Created on: April 08, 2008

Some criticize United States foreign policy as imperialistic. Others believe our great country is unquestionably altruistic. But I believe that while both views have some merit, the U.S. most often acts opportunistically in accordance with its free-market capitalistic business practices around the world. Unfortunately, the environmental impact of U.S. business activity abroad is all too often neglected due to loopholes, poor enforcement, and sketchy quid pro quos with the partnering countries' business and political leaders.

Indeed, the current oil drilling boom in the Ecuadorian and Peruvian Amazon is a perfect example of yet another American opportunistic business enterprise, but one that could have serious repercussions on the Amazonian ecosystem in addition to the threat of increased global warming. American companies, however, would likely argue that national security trumps environmental issues because our country is currently attempting to exploit what few non-Middle Eastern sources of petroleum are left in the world. Would this argument hold up in a court of law? More than likely, it wouldn't even reach that level because it would be deemed a national security issue by the G.W. Bush administration. Thus, the energy-environment-national security nexus.

When it comes to global environmental issues, the question of whether U.S. corporations should be held legally responsible in American courts for the environmental consequences of its business actions abroad invariably arises. However, because our world is a global one, jurisdiction should theoretically fall under an international court such as the International Criminal Court (ICC) or the International Court of Justice (ICJ). This raises an interesting conundrum as both courts are ostensibly set up to redress global legal issues amongst countries, yet both are severely lacking in participation and enforcement. In other words, they don't have teeth when it comes to prosecution of global environmental crimes.

The definition of an environmental crime from a global business perspective is highly subjective, and not yet formally codified into international law. Although the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) was created in 1972 as an initial effort to create a global legal framework when it comes to environmental issues, enforcement is another issue altogether. UN Agenda 21, the most widely recognized initiative for global sustainability, adopted UNEP as the principal UN body for environmental law. But

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