EMERITUS: investigative protocol and technologies to detect waste crime

Waste crimes, including waste dumping, trafficking, and illegal storage, are multifaceted environmental offences. Investigating them is challenging not only due to complex modi operandi and multiple actors involved, but also because their environmental impact is often not immediately visible.

The Horizon Europe-funded project EMERITUS (Environmental Crimes’ Intelligence and Investigation Protocol Based on Multiple Data Sources) addressed this challenge by developing advanced technological solutions and operational protocols to enable coordinated investigations of waste-related offences across Europe.

Within this framework, the report “Waste crime investigation phases and the role of emerging technologies” provides an overview of the work carried out by Crime&tech — the spin-off company of Transcrime — which led the development of a multi-phase investigative protocol, built on a comprehensive literature review, the analysis of 25 judicial cases, and interviews with law enforcement and border control professionals. The protocol, integrated into the EMERITUS platform, supports authorities throughout the full investigation process, offering offence-specific procedures and incorporating EMERITUS’s monitoring technologies.

In parallel, the project also explored synergies with the ISF-funded DATACROS III project, coordinated by Transcrime, to assess how corporate risk indicators can enhance early detection and enable more proactive responses to environmental crime.

Discover more:

• Report
• EMERITUS website