Page 72 - AEI Insights 2020 - Vol. 6, Issue 1

AEI Insights, Vol 6, Issue 1, 2020

• raising level of awareness of the linkages between environmental crime and organized
crime - wildlife trafficking, transnational trafficking in waste and illegal logging most
of all
• remaining ambivalence in the definition of concepts
o organized crime
o environmental crime
o organized environmental crime
• lack of clear definitions makes it difficult to accurately identify organized
environmental crime within the overall crime statistics, which has an affect on the
awareness of organized environmental crime amongst policy makers and enforcement
institutions. This subsequently impacts the allocation of financial resources and
prioritization in the political agenda
• neither the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime nor the
Council Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA (on the fight against organized crime)
does not address environmental crime explicitly
• the European Union has obligations for companies and their management and
supervisory bodies taking into account the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR):
“accountable, transparent and responsible business behavior and sustainable growth”
1
• the promotion of these measures can indirectly improve transparency and action to fight
environmental crime
• Directive 2014/95/EU creates a binding disclosure requirement among others related to
the environment for companies with at least 500 employees, such as
o “environmental protection

o social responsibility and treatment of employees

o respect for human rights
o anti-corruption and bribery
o diversity on company boards (in terms of age, gender, educational and
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professional background)”

Definition of organized crime
• UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime defines an “organized criminal
group as a structured group of three or more persons, existing for a period of time and
acting in concert with the aim of committing one or more serious crimes or offences
established in accordance with this Convention, in order to obtain, directly or indirectly,
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a financial or other material benefit”
• U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines an organized criminal group as “any
group having some manner of a formalized structure and whose primary objective is to
obtain money though illegal activities. Such groups maintain their position through the
use of actual or threatened violence, corrupt public officials, graft, or extortion, and

1 European Parliament: Draft European Parliament Legislative Resolution on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of
the Council amending Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by
certain large companies and groups; http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-7-2014-0006_EN.html; (accessed on 08. 10. 2019)
2 European Commission: EFFACE (2016): The EU`s strengths and weaknesses in tackling environmental crime
https://efface.eu/sites/default/files/publications/EFFACE_policy_brief_16.pdf; (accessed on 17. 10. 2019)
3 European Commission: Non-financial reporting; https://ec.europa.eu/info/business-economy-euro/company-reporting-and-
auditing/company-reporting/non-financial-reporting_en; (accessed on 16.09.2019)
4 United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime And The Protocols Thereto (2014): United Nations Convention Against
Transnational Organized Crime Page 5; https://www.unodc.org/documents/middleeastandnorthafrica/organised-
crime/UNITED_NATIONS_CONVENTION_AGAINST_TRANSNATIONAL_ORGANIZED_CRIME_AND_THE_PROTOCOLS_THE
RETO.pdf (accessed on 14.07.2019)

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