A recent report drafted by INTERPOL and UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) has shown that environmental crimes are linked with other forms of serious criminal activity, including counterfeiting, drug trafficking, corruption, cybercrime, and even acts of terrorism and armed resistance groups.

Jürgen Stock, Secretary General of INTERPOL, said: “Environmental crime is transnational in scope and insidious in nature. It robs governments of much-needed revenues, people of their livelihoods, and communities of peace and security […] The international community needs to support a comprehensive approach by following rhetoric with action, policy with implementation, and law with enforcement,”

The joint report, entitled Environment, Peace and Security: A Convergence of Threats, was first published earlier this week at the World Bank’s Law, Justice and Development Week 2016. The findings are the result of researchers surveying crime statistics in almost 70 countries, over 80 percent of which viewed environmental crime as a “national priority”. The large majority of the countries which were studied have policies suggesting that younger, more sophisticated criminal activities are a growing threat to the peace and security of the international community.

As the global green lobby grows in size and influence, environmental crime has become a larger talking point in courts all over the world. Legislation is being passed all the time to stop businesses and individuals damaging the environment illegally, and environmental crimes have become part of day-to-day business for your average regulatory dispute attorney.

This social and political shift in attitude we’re seeing everywhere is certainly reflected in the report’s findings. It found that environmental crimes across the world were worth between 91 and 258 billion US dollars every year. More troubling, however, is the fact that so many of these crimes are intimately linked to more serious forms of criminal activity.

Perhaps the most pressing example is terrorist groups and various other criminal organizations funding their activities through exploiting resources in various conflict zones. Findings in the report show that at least 40% of internal conflicts across the world are linked to the exploitation of the country’s national resources. In other areas, criminal groups have been found to take advantage of communities with rampant poverty. Through extortion and exploitation, life in these poorer areas becomes even more destitute. This, in turn, incentivises people to take part in poaching, along with environmental crimes like illegal logging, mining and fishing.

Erik Solheim, UN Environment Chief, said: “The time has come to meet the threat of environmental crime with a coordinated response from member States, international organizations and the United Nations. Such a response must address the need for improved information sharing, enhanced protection of civilians, better law enforcement, and a deeper understanding of the drivers of conflicts,”

In the face of all this crime and damage to the environment, the report ends with a recommendation for a multidisciplinary approach to stomp out environmental crime, stronger implementation of environmental policies, and greater exchange across various industrial sectors. The findings are expected to prompt greater support for law enforcement dealing with environmental crime throughout the international community.