Environmental crime covers offenses against the natural world, such as illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, illegal mining, and waste trafficking. It is one of the most profitable forms of crime, and a major source of proceeds that then need laundering.
Key takeaways
- Environmental crime is offenses against the natural world.
- It includes illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, mining, fishing, and waste.
- It is one of the most profitable forms of transnational crime.
- It is a predicate offense that generates money to launder.
- The FATF has made it a growing anti-money laundering focus.
- Its proceeds are often laundered through trade and shell companies.
On this page
What it isTypesScale and profitA predicate offenseHow the money is launderedA growing AML focusRed flagsHow firms address itFAQsRead more
What is environmental crime?
Environmental crime is crime that harms the natural world for profit. It covers a range of offenses, from cutting down protected forests to trafficking endangered animals, all driven by the money to be made.
For years it was treated as a lesser issue, a matter for conservationists rather than financial investigators. That has changed. Environmental crime is now recognized as a serious, organized, and hugely profitable form of crime, with all the dirty money that implies.
It has become a real concern for anti-money laundering. Read more: it is a growing category of financial crime in its own right.
Types of environmental crime
Environmental crime spans many activities, united by the illegal exploitation of nature. The main categories are wide-ranging.
- Illegal logging. Cutting and trading timber in breach of the law.
- Wildlife trafficking. Trading protected animals and their parts, such as ivory.
- Illegal mining. Extracting minerals and metals, such as gold, unlawfully.
- Illegal fishing. Taking fish in breach of quotas and protections.
- Waste trafficking. Illegally dumping or trading hazardous waste.
Each generates significant proceeds, and each has been linked to organized crime networks operating across borders.
The scale and profit of environmental crime
The scale of environmental crime is far larger than many realize. It is big business for the criminals who run it.
The UNEP and INTERPOL estimated the value of environmental crime at $91 to $258 billion a year, making it one of the largest criminal enterprises in the world, ranking fourth after drug trafficking, counterfeiting, and human trafficking. Illegal gold mining, wildlife trafficking, and timber crime each run into the tens of billions. These are not marginal activities; they are major, profitable crimes.
Environmental crime as a predicate offense
For anti-money laundering, the key point is that environmental crime is a predicate offense. It generates money that then has to be laundered.
Like drug trafficking or fraud, environmental crime produces large criminal proceeds. Those proceeds are dirty money, and criminals must clean them to use them, which brings environmental crime squarely into the AML system. Treating it as a predicate offense means the proceeds of illegal logging or wildlife trafficking can be pursued as laundering, opening a financial front against these crimes.
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How environmental crime money is laundered
The proceeds of environmental crime are laundered much like those of other crimes, often through trade and companies. A few routes are common.
Criminals frequently mix illegal products, such as unlawfully logged timber or illegally mined gold, into legitimate supply chains, so the proceeds look like honest trade. Shell companies help disguise ownership and move money, and trade-based methods hide value in the flow of goods. Illegal gold mining, in particular, has become a favored way to launder money, because gold is valuable, portable, and easy to blend into legitimate markets.
Because these routes run through ordinary trade and companies, the dirty money can be hard to tell apart from honest commerce, which is exactly why it slips through when firms are not looking for it.
A growing AML focus
Environmental crime has moved up the anti-money laundering agenda, and fast. Regulators and standard-setters now treat it as a priority.
The FATF has highlighted money laundering from environmental crime and urged countries and firms to treat it seriously, reflecting the scale of the proceeds involved. This means financial institutions are increasingly expected to consider environmental crime in their risk assessments and monitoring, looking at the sectors and flows where its dirty money is likely to appear. It is no longer only a conservation issue; it is a financial crime priority. That shift has pulled banks and their compliance teams into a fight once left largely to rangers and customs officers.
Red flags of environmental crime
Certain signs suggest a customer or transaction may be tied to environmental crime. Firms in exposed sectors watch for them.
- High-risk goods. Trade in timber, wildlife, gold, or waste from risky regions.
- Opaque supply chains. Goods whose origin cannot be clearly traced.
- Mismatched activity. Trade or payments that do not fit the stated business.
- High-risk geographies. Links to areas known for environmental crime.
The common thread is value flowing from natural resources in ways that cannot be cleanly explained.
How firms address environmental crime
Firms address environmental crime by bringing it into their existing financial crime controls. A few priorities matter most.
- Assess the risk. Consider exposure to sectors linked to environmental crime.
- Know high-risk trades. Understand timber, wildlife, gold, and waste flows.
- Watch the geographies. Pay attention to regions known for these crimes.
- Report suspicion. File a report where activity points to environmental crime.
Weigh a trade route’s country risk
Look up a country against FATF, sanctions, and corruption data to judge environmental crime exposure.
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Frequently asked questions
What is environmental crime?
Environmental crime is crime that harms the natural world for profit, covering offenses such as illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, illegal mining, illegal fishing, and waste trafficking. Once treated as a lesser issue, it is now recognized as a serious, organized, and hugely profitable form of crime, and a major source of dirty money that then needs laundering.
What are the types of environmental crime?
Types include illegal logging, cutting and trading timber unlawfully; wildlife trafficking, trading protected animals and their parts such as ivory; illegal mining, extracting minerals such as gold unlawfully; illegal fishing, taking fish in breach of quotas; and waste trafficking, illegally dumping or trading hazardous waste. Each generates significant proceeds and has been linked to cross-border organized crime.
How big is environmental crime?
Environmental crime is far larger than many realize. UNEP and INTERPOL estimated its value at $91 to $258 billion a year, making it one of the largest criminal enterprises in the world, ranking fourth after drug trafficking, counterfeiting, and human trafficking. Illegal gold mining, wildlife trafficking, and timber crime each run into the tens of billions annually.
Is environmental crime a predicate offense?
Yes. Environmental crime is a predicate offense for money laundering, meaning it generates criminal proceeds that then have to be laundered. Like drug trafficking or fraud, it produces dirty money criminals must clean to use. Treating it as a predicate offense means the proceeds of illegal logging or wildlife trafficking can be pursued as laundering, opening a financial front against these crimes.
How is money from environmental crime laundered?
The proceeds of environmental crime are laundered much like those of other crimes, often through trade and companies. Criminals mix illegal products such as unlawfully logged timber or illegally mined gold into legitimate supply chains, use shell companies to disguise ownership, and hide value in the flow of goods. Illegal gold mining in particular is a favored way to launder money.
Why is environmental crime an AML focus?
Environmental crime has become an anti-money laundering focus because of the scale of the proceeds involved. The FATF has highlighted money laundering from environmental crime and urged countries and firms to treat it seriously. Financial institutions are increasingly expected to consider environmental crime in their risk assessments and monitoring, looking at the sectors and flows where its dirty money appears.
Why is illegal gold mining used for laundering?
Illegal gold mining is favored for laundering because gold is valuable, portable, and easy to blend into legitimate markets. Illegally mined gold can be mixed with legally sourced gold and sold as legitimate, breaking the link to its criminal origin. This makes it an effective way to launder proceeds, which is why gold supply chains from high-risk regions receive particular scrutiny.
What are the red flags of environmental crime?
Red flags include trade in high-risk goods such as timber, wildlife, gold, or waste from risky regions; opaque supply chains whose origin cannot be traced; trade or payments that do not fit the stated business; and links to geographies known for environmental crime. The common thread is value flowing from natural resources in ways that cannot be cleanly explained.
How does the FATF treat environmental crime?
The FATF, the global anti-money laundering standard-setter, has highlighted money laundering from environmental crime and urged countries and firms to address it. It has published work on the topic, reflecting the large proceeds involved. This signals that environmental crime should be part of how financial institutions assess risk and monitor activity, not treated solely as a conservation matter.
How do firms address environmental crime risk?
Firms address environmental crime by bringing it into their financial crime controls: assessing exposure to linked sectors, understanding high-risk trades such as timber, wildlife, gold, and waste, watching geographies known for these crimes, and reporting suspicion where activity points to environmental crime. The goal is to treat it like any other predicate offense within existing AML processes.
Why attack environmental crime through money?
Attacking environmental crime through its money is often more effective than chasing the physical crime alone. Seizing a shipment of illegal timber stops one load, but following and freezing the proceeds can disrupt the whole network behind it. Pursuing the laundering has become a powerful tool against some of the world’s most damaging and profitable criminal trades.
What crimes count as environmental crime?
Environmental crime covers offenses that illegally exploit or harm the natural world, including illegal logging and timber trade, trafficking of protected wildlife, illegal mining of minerals and metals, illegal and unregulated fishing, and the illegal trade or dumping of hazardous waste. These crimes are often organized, cross-border, and highly profitable, generating proceeds that bring them within the scope of anti-money laundering.
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Last reviewed July 12, 2026 · 11 min read · Written for compliance and risk professionals · By the WhoWiki editorial team
Key takeaway: environmental crime covers offenses like illegal logging, wildlife trafficking, and illegal mining, and it is a major and highly profitable source of dirty money.