A new study by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has put forests on alert.
The report, published on Monday, reveals that forest crime is interconnected with other types of illegal activities, such as illegal mining, human trafficking, and drug trafficking.
Furthermore, this exacerbates damage to the environment, nearby communities, and the economy.
Forests on Alert: What the Report Says
The study, titled Forest Crimes: Illegal Deforestation and Logging, is the second part of the Global Analysis of Environmental Crime.
It provides a global overview of the state of knowledge on forest crimes, with special attention to market dynamics and the criminal actors behind illegal deforestation and logging.
Illegal activities in forests.
“Our study shows that perpetrators of forest crimes are often involved in other types of crimes, from drug and wildlife trafficking to illegal mining and child labor,” stated Angela Me, Chief of Research and Analysis at UNODC.
“They can also be legitimate companies seeking shortcuts to increase their profits,” the report highlights.
Organized crime groups may engage in forest crimes to increase their profits or expand their influence and territorial control.
In South America, these groups launder their drug trafficking profits through land speculation, the agricultural sector, or livestock, as indicated.
Meanwhile, in other regions such as the Congo Basin and Somalia, organized crime groups with political motivations sell and tax charcoal from illegally logged forests.
In some parts of Latin America, organized crime groups are involved in a range of illicit activities beyond drug trafficking that have a significant negative impact on the environment and create violence hotspots.
The Amazon Basin is a region where drug trafficking organizations commit crimes that affect the environment beyond deforestation.
Why it is Difficult to Identify Them
According to the study, forest crimes infiltrate legal processes and supply chains, making their identification and repression difficult.
Forest crimes.
Illegally logged timber, for example, enters legal markets through fraudulent permits, bribes, and regulatory loopholes. Often, with the help of corrupt officials and complicit companies, allowing for laundering in the global economy.
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