By Alejandro Melgoza and Alex Papadovassilakis

We traveled over 300 kilometers through a trio of nature reserves to document how illegal loggers have ravaged some of the region’s most biodiverse forests and to chronicle the unlikely story of a small group of park rangers fighting back. This investigation, which used video and other multimedia elements to explain this complex criminal economy, is our most in-depth exploration of environmental crime yet..

Washington, DC: InSight Crime, 2022. 38p.

By Willis Okumu

Summary: Sandalwood trafficking in Kenya is a multi-million dollar trade that exploits local communities and leads to deforestation. The illegal trade in sandalwood has been sustained by a network of actors, from the community level to international markets. This has resulted in the devastation of community forests and has placed the sandalwood tree at risk of extinction. Meanwhile, middle- and upper-tier actors in this criminal network continue to enrich themselves. While the mandate to protect sandalwood in the wild belongs to the Kenya Forest Services, weaknesses in the Forest Conservation and Management Act No. 34 of 2016 has enabled the prosecution of sandalwood trafficking cases though the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act of 2013. The confusion that has emanated from lack of clarity on enforcement jurisdiction has emboldened sandalwood traffickers when presented in court. Further, lack of harmony in East African conservation laws has further facilitated the protection of Kenyan sandalwood smuggled into Uganda and Tanzania. Key findings ∙ Sandalwood trafficking is an environmental crime that leads to a loss of biodiversity, which has a negative impact on the ability of communities to produce enough food to ensure their livelihoods. ∙ Women seem to control the sandalwood trafficking network in Samburu County, first as harvesters at the community level and then as the traders coordinating linkages between local communities, police officers and other members of state agencies. ∙ Sandalwood trafficking in Kenya seems to rely on state officials who protect this organised crime network. ∙ A multi-agency approach to tackling sandalwood trafficking has had some success since 2020 and should be continued. ∙ Through the support of state and community agencies, sandalwood trees can be propagated in order to enable their sustainable harvesting and the commercialisation of the trade in northern Kenya.

ENACT - Africa, 2020. 20p.

By Davyth Stewart, Christian Nellemann, Ben Brock, Emilie Van der Henst

Wildlife and timber trafficking often involves transnational organised crime networks and generates significant illicit proceeds, billions each year. Despite the seriousness of this criminal activity, related financial investigations and asset recovery approaches remain largely under-utilised in the EU, with investigations and prosecutions of wildlife trafficking still relying primarily on charges for poaching or trafficking. Wildlife criminals are, therefore, not punished for the financial crimes they have committed, and their criminal assets remain in their hands, allowing them to further invest in their illegal business.

TRAFFIC International Cambridge, United Kingdom. 2023. 86p.

By Forest Trends

On February 1st, 2021, the military launched a coup d'état against the newly re-elected government of Myanmar. Over the past year, the military junta has been accused of massive human rights violations, arresting more than 12,000 people, killing more than 1,500, and instigating a growing humanitarian crisis that has seen more than 400,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) (AAPP Burma 2022, UN News 2022). Compounding the impact of COVID-19, the military’s violence has destroyed Myanmar’s economy. Furthermore, the majority of society has engaged in a predominately non-violent Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), including a boycott of companies with military links. Deprived of revenue, the junta has increasingly relied on revenue from natural resources to support their operations and their ongoing campaign to retain power, which has included escalation of armed conflict and attacks on civilians. While much international focus has been given to the revenues generated by the oil, gas, and mining sectors, the forest sector has in the past been an important source of revenue for Myanmar’s governments and entities associated with the military. This report reviews the timber sector’s role in the revenue now being generated for the current military regime.  

Washington, DC: Forest Trends, 2022. 42p.

By Duncan Brack, Chantal Marijnissen, and Saskia Ozinga

Around the world, people are waking up to the fact that illegal forestry activities are widespread and have extremely negative consequences. Not only does illegal logging damage the environment, but tax evasion by forestry companies deprives governments of billions of euros in revenues, related corruption and impunity to prosecution undermine the rule of law, and in several countries the proceeds from illegal forestry activities have financed violent conflict. Clearly something must be done. In this paper several of Europe’s most knowledgeable experts about illegal forestry activities have put their heads together to examine what the European Commission and member states can do to address the problem. They focus particularly on trade, finance, and procurement issues, although they briefly discuss efforts to strengthen the capacity of national institutions in developing countries. One by one they go through each of the specific instruments that might be used and analyse their advantages and disadvantages and the practical aspects of their application. They conclude that steps can be taken by using existing legislation and mechanisms if the Commission and member states vigorously pursue those options, but additional legislation is needed.

Brussels; FERN: London: Royal Institute of International Affairs , 2002. 74p.

By William M. Rhodes, Elizabeth P. Allen and Myfanwy Callahan

The literature review revealed that the causes, methods, and perpetrators of illegal timbering differ depending on the economies, societies, ecologies, and legal institutions where logging occurs. To provide a way to simplify and organize this diversity, this report develops a market-based description of present day trade in illegal timber, focusing on the economic and political structures that create the environment and provide the incentives that make illegal logging possible and profitable. Four dominant patterns of economic and political structures (see Table 1 in the report) characterize illegal logging across nations and over time: • Enforcement / Rule of Law • Enforcement / No Rule of Law • Some Enforcement / No Rule of Law • No Enforcement / No Rule of Law This market-based description does not explain everything about the crime, but it nevertheless provides a useful device for organizing the literature and presenting a coherent story about the logging, milling and trafficking of illegal timber.

Cambridge, MA: Abt Associates, 2006. 58p.