Differentiation of Criminal Liability for Destruction or Damage to Plant Life: Challenges of Martial Law and European Standards

Abstract

The article explores specific problematic issues regarding the lack of clear legislative differentiation between intentional and negligent harm to plant life in the criminal law of Ukraine. The relevance of this study is driven by the unprecedented scale of environmental losses resulting from the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, which as of March 2026, have exceeded UAH 6.41 trillion, with damages from forest fires and biomass destruction alone accounting for over UAH 2 trillion.

The current version of Article 245 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine does not account for the subject's attitude toward the consequences in the context of modern environmental disasters, leading to a discrepancy between the punishment and the actual social danger. The study employs a comparative legal method to analyze the provisions of Directive (EU) 2024/1203 and the concept of «environmental negligence» in the Model Penal Code (USA).

The methodological basis of the research comprises a comprehensive set of general scientific and specialized legal methods. In particular, the comparative legal method was employed to analyze the provisions of Directive (EU) 2024/1203 and the concepts of "environmental negligence" and the «scale of guilt» within the Model Penal Code (USA). The statistical method was applied to process data from the State Environmental Inspectorate of Ukraine regarding the scale of environmental damage resulting from armed aggression. The hermeneutic method was used to examine the content of Article 245 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and the case law of the Supreme Court. Finally, the modeling method enabled the formulation of specific proposals for amending the criminal legislation of Ukraine, aimed at the differentiation of liability for intentional and negligent acts.

The paper highlights certain issues regarding the inadequate interaction between state authorities and public environmental and human rights organizations in assessing environmental damage and monitoring the state of the environment. Proposals have been developed to amend national legislation to improve the norms providing for liability for the destruction or damage to plant life objects.

Certain aspects of criminal liability for the damage caused to the Ukrainian environment by the military actions of the Russian Federation against Ukraine are examined. Corresponding legislative changes are proposed. The practical significance of the results lies in the possibility of their application to enhance the Criminal Code of Ukraine and optimize methods for proving the intentional destruction of plant life in international judicial institutions.