Mapping environmental crime to characterize human impacts on islands: an applied and methodological research in Canary Islands

Abstract

Environmental crimes are a global issue due to the damage they cause to landscapes and ecosystems. This study focused on characterizing environmental crimes in the Canary Islands (Spain). Four categories of environmental crimes related to construction, mining and tilling, solid waste, and liquid waste) were defined and analysed. A total of 28 databases were generated, corresponding to each of the 7 major islands and each environmental crime typology. Each database was linked to information on land use and the socioeconomic and physical characteristics of the territory. For each database, firstly a descriptive statistical analysis was conducted, followed by the generation of a regularized Random Forest model with the aim of identifying characteristics that may be related to the location of environmental crimes. The results showed that, in most cases, proximity to residential accommodations, agricultural areas and industrial zones act as the main explanatory features of the distribution of environmental crimes. Furthermore, a marked pattern of concentration of environmental crimes in the coastal belt of the islands was observed, mainly associated with urban-tourist development since the 1960s and 1970s.