EMERITUS Final Event highlights innovation in environmental crime enforcement

On 1st July 2025, the Final Event of the EMERITUS Project took place in Turin, Italy, marking the conclusion of a 3-year collaboration between research institutions, law enforcement authorities, and EU agencies to strengthen the fight against environmental crime, particularly illegal waste-related activities, through innovation, training and institutional dialogue.

The event gathered project partners, members of the Community of Practice, representatives from key European institutions and other stakeholders, with a total of 78 participants in person, to discuss results, reflect on lessons learned, and identify paths for the exploitation and sustainability of the project’s tools and protocols.

final event

Strategic vision and end-user focus

The day opened with an introduction from the project coordinators, Freddy Rivas González (GMV) and Margherita Volpe (Zabala Innovation), and a speech from Georgios Kaiafas (European Commission Project Officer), who praised EMERITUS for delivering operational innovation while aligning with the political and economic priorities of the EU. He highlighted the importance of cyber-resilience in AI-powered tools and emphasised that the results must be validated and reliable before deployment at operational levels.

coordinators

“Training officials is essential for the correct use of the tools. AI must be secure, adaptable, and continuously improved through updated data”

The EMERITUS investigation protocol, built with inputs from police authorities and refined through the project’s CoP, was noted as a particularly valuable output in addressing cross-border environmental crime.

Reflections from the roundtables

The roundtables offered a space for honest reflection on the implementation of the project’s tools and protocols. Key takeaways included:

  • Train-the-trainer approaches ensured the long-term sustainability of training activities.
  • Scenario-based testing was not only valuable for usability
  •  but also fostered awareness and capacity building among end-users.
  • The modular nature of EMERITUS training was a success factor, especially in adapting to local needs and various user profiles.
  • Waste crime complexity meant that no universal protocol could be applied, solutions had to be tailored to specific crime types and institutional contexts.
  • Technical support and translation services were essential for the successful delivery of cross-border training sessions.
  • Public engagement was seen as a powerful asset, citizen reporting helps scale monitoring efforts and improve early detection of illegal activities.

Institutional synergies, from field to policy

Representatives from EUSPA, IMPEL, UNICRI and other institutions stressed the importance of embedding EMERITUS outcomes into ongoing policy and operational frameworks.

Yannick Felici (EUSPA) highlighted how EMERITUS was among the most engaging projects presented during their workshops. He praised the integration of GNSS technology to support law enforcement and emphasised the need to keep pace with emerging technologies.

Federico Filipponi (IMPEL) emphasised the dual importance of building tools and ensuring they are accessible and understandable to prosecutors and judges. AI can be a valuable part of the workflow, but only if it is legally sound and ethically applied.

Matthew Burnett-Stuart (UNICRI) reflected on the global relevance of EMERITUS, underscoring the need for ongoing capacity building, international cooperation, and leveraging legal frameworks from adjacent domains like anti-money laundering to target high-level environmental crime networks.

Key results from the field

At the Final Event, the EMERITUS team showcased how innovative tools, like satellite analysis, AI models, and hydrological sensors, can support the detection and investigation of environmental crimes.

Satellite and AI-based models proved effective in identifying illegal waste sites, especially large ones, and helped prioritise inspections through risk analysis. While accurate and scalable, these systems still require refinement to reduce false positives and adapt to environmental conditions.

Hydrological tools were used to detect pollution events in remote areas, offering reliable spill tracking and flow analysis, though weather and site-specific factors influenced their accuracy.

A clear takeaway was that while these tools offer strong potential, they must be combined with expert human oversight. Adaptation and proper training remain essential to ensure effective use across different contexts.

Sustainability and exploitation of the project

With the adoption of the new EU Environmental Crime Directive, the timing of EMERITUS’s outcomes could not be more relevant. The project’s results, training protocols, data processing tools, AI-based detection models; are already generating interest among institutional actors and offer practical, scalable solutions to environmental crime.

As discussions concluded, the importance of institutional engagement, open collaboration, and adaptation to user needs emerged as key enablers for the long-term impact of EMERITUS.

The EMERITUS Final Event closed a chapter of intense collaboration, technological development, and cross-border exchange. As the project concludes, it leaves behind a solid foundation of practical tools, informed protocols, and a stronger network of institutions working together to address environmental crime more effectively.