Communication on an EU action plan against wildlife trafficking

Wildlife trafficking has become one of the world's most profitable organised crimes. The exact scale is difficult to quantify, but different sources estimate the profits from such trafficking at between €8 and €20 billion annually. It covers a broad range of protected species, including elephants and rhinos, corals, pangolins, tigers and great apes.

The EU has an important role to play in tackling this traffic, as Europe is currently a destination market and a hub for trafficking in transit to other regions. It is also a region from which certain species are sourced for illegal trade. In recent years, Member States have reported, in particular, seizures of ivory and rhino horns in transit and illegal imports of live reptiles and exotic birds, while several tonnes of highly endangered eels from the EU have been illegally sold to Asia.

The EU has already shown leadership in tackling the illegal trade in natural resources by adopting ambitious policies on timber and fishery products. This EU Action Plan demonstrates that the EU is ready to live up to international expectations and commitments, and that it is raising the level of its ambition as regards action against the illegal trade in wildlife. This will also help to ensure that the significant investments made over the last decades through EU development support for wildlife conservation worldwide will not be undermined through criminal activities.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Commission launches Action Plan to crack down on wildlife trafficking http://www.europeansources.info/record/commission-launches-action-plan-to-crack-down-on-wildlife-trafficking/

EUR-Lex: SWD(2016)38: Analysis and evidence in support of the EU action plan against wildlife trafficking http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2016:038:FIN

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