Monitor - environmental crime

Environmental crime is a new EU priority amongst the ten priorities of the EU Policy Cycle in the fight against organised and serious international crime between 2018 and 2021. The objective of this monitor is to identify opportunities for action in the prevention of wildlife trafficking.

There are indicators that organised crime groups are involved. Illegal wildlife trafficking negatively impacts economic and social development, governance and biodiversity. The EU is considered the top global importer in terms of value of wildlife, ranging from live reptiles and birds to caviar and reptile skins. Additionally, the major ports and airports of the EU are important transit points for trafficking activities. The objective of this monitor is to identify opportunities for action in the prevention of wildlife trafficking. These opportunities can be largely divided in four categories. First of all, there are promising existing tools that are worth promoting because they have proven their potential in the prevention and fight against wildlife trafficking. Secondly, the EC in its progress report and the experts have identified certain key actors that are interesting target groups for awareness campaigns. A third category of opportunities for action are  awareness raising campaigns concerning ‘booming’ species that are currently being illegally trafficked in the EU. Finally, there is room for raising awareness with regard to the importance of document fraud and corruption in the criminal chain of illegal wildlife trafficking.