The Growth of Environmental Crimes

Environmental Crimes might just start getting the attention it deserves. Environmental Crimes include a huge list of illegal activities- banned products, illegal dumping, littering, illegal e-waste shipments and disposal, illegal seizure of land, illegal trade in wildlife; smuggling of ozone-depleting substances (ODS); illegal trade of hazardous waste, illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing; and illegal logging and trade in timber.

In fact I Just have To Eco You

• 5-7% per year Environmental Crimes annual growth rate
• 6% financial growth per year. That’s 2x as fast as the global economy. (Grist)
• $70-213 billion in 2014 Value of Environmental Crimes
• $91-258 billion in 2016- Value of Environmental Crimes:  increase of 26%
• $7-23 billion USD Illegal Wildlife trade. Primary markets: Africa, Asia and South America.
• $51-152 billion USD in Forestry crimes, this includes corporate crimes and illegal logging. In 2016 The International Union of Forest Research Organizations reported that illegal logging has affected all continents and is widespread across all tropical forest regions like China, India, and Vietnam.
• $11-24 billion USD Illegal Fishing is a global problems ad effects and occurs in all countries.
• Shark Finning: hundred million sharks are captured every year by specialised ships and up to 70 million of them are captured to only have their fins cut off alive on the ship and then be thrown back into the sea. (Active Sustainability )
• $12-48 billion Illegal Mining; Illegal mining is most common in Africa, Latin America and parts of Asia. Impacts are pollution from chemicals and destruction of flora and fauna.
• $10-12 billion USD/ year on Pollution: illegal waste (littering, dumping, fly-tipping, waste disposal). This is a global concern in all continents. Waste trafficking originates mainly in developed countries, with the European Union, the United States, Japan and Australia being most identified as the main exporters of illegal waste.
• $$$$ Billions in littering and illegal dumping globally.

The problem with all of this.. it effects each person in the world.. as every one of those environmental crimes, either effects our health, our jobs, the air, the economy, our food supply, our energy supply, birth defects, With it growing as fast, unless stopped, it will continue to steamroll until too late.

And it is lucrative and low risk, because they are not a priority. There is either little or no infrastructure and laws to combat, little or no money or resources, little or no education on how devastating this can be. It is a very sad global problem that the majority of people are not even aware of.

What can a single person do? Alot as it turns out, aside from not littering, illegal dump, recycle appropriately and support all the laws and report incidents that you might witness on any environmental crime. Don’t support or buy products that are might be illegal. If each person did that.. we would be in better shape.

Resources

The Cost of Illegal Wildlife Trade: Elephant and Rhino 

Environmental Crime: The Effects of an Understated Issue.

Unenvironment: Environmental Crimes on the Rise and Efforts to Prevent Them 

Interpol- Environmental Crimes and Organized Crime 

Criminology and Environmental Crimes 

EPA: Environmental Crimes Bulletin ; Monthly bulletins summarize publicized investigative activity and adjudicated cases by EPA’s Criminal Enforcement special agents, forensic specialists, and legal support staff.

Justice Department: Environmental Crimes Section ;”ECS’s forty three prosecutors and twelve support staff bring criminal cases against individuals and organizations that break the laws that protect our nation’s ecological and wildlife resources.  ECS attorneys bring cases throughout ninety-four federal judicial districts, provide advice and training to other prosecutors and investigators, and coordinate with ENRD’s Law and Policy Section on policy and legislative matters.  The Section also serves as a nationwide clearinghouse for information about how to investigate and prosecute environmental crime.  Much of the Section’s work is done in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, many of which are staffed with Assistant U.S. Attorneys (AUSAs) who have trained at an annual Environmental Crimes Seminar organized by ECS.

Pollution Issues