Environmental Crime Directive transposition - WWF Briefing paper
Posted on February, 17 2025
This briefing presents WWF recommendations for transposing the revised Environmental Crime Directive.
Environmental crime undermines our environment and health, threatens human rights, including the right to a healthy environment, and hampers efforts to curb the climate and biodiversity crises. Yet, in the European Union, few environmental crime cases are successfully investigated, prosecuted and adjudicated. To enhance the EU’s response to environmental crime, a revised Environmental Crime Directive was adopted last year. The new legislation greatly expands the list of environmental criminal offences, provides for specific sanction levels for offenders, and includes comprehensive provisions to support efforts by competent enforcement and judicial authorities in tackling environmental crime.
WWF stands ready to support Member States’ efforts to ensure that the transposition of the Environmental Crime Directive into national law is as effective as possible.
Read more in our briefing with WWF recommendations for the transposition of the directive.
Environmental crime is the third most lucrative crime category globally. The value of illegal logging, illegal fishing and illegal wildlife trade alone has been estimated at, at least, USD 1 trillion per year.
© Iiris Kokkonen / WWF
Environmental crime is the third most lucrative crime category globally. The value of illegal logging, illegal fishing and illegal wildlife trade alone has been estimated at, at least, USD 1 trillion per year.
© Iiris Kokkonen / WWF