The past years have witnessed a heightened interest in international regulation to address the problem of ‘dirty money’. This is reflected in initiatives that include the revised 2012 Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations,^{Footnote 39} the 2005 Warsaw Convention,^{Footnote 40} the 2000 Palermo Convention,^{Footnote 41} the 1990 Strasbourg Convention,^{Footnote 42} and the planned EU Directive on money laundering.^{Footnote 43} The rationale underpinning the ‘follow the money’ approach is to demonstrate that crime does not pay, to remove negative role models, to disrupt criminal networks and markets, to deter criminal activity through reduced returns, and to improve detection rates through a better understanding of criminal markets. This focus on financial assets is increasingly seen as a key aspect of the fight against organized crime. Much of the discussion on organized crime focuses on crimes such as drug trafficking, people trafficking, and corruption. Yet, other crimes merit increased attention. This book aims to explore the use of anti-money laundering and asset recovery powers in the area of transnational environmental crime (TEC).

The opening three chapters (by Gregory Rose, Lorraine Elliot, and Samantha Bricknell, respectively) articulate the importance of this topic. As Elliot points out, ‘[c]ompared with other forms of transnational crime – such as drugs or arms smuggling – TEC is an area of high returns and low risk’ and ‘an area in which activity has become increasingly systematic, involving organized crime groups, sophisticated smuggling chains and complex trade routes with multiple forms of concealment’ (p. 16). However, environmental crimes are often seen as ‘minor’ or ‘administrative’ in nature. Criminal sanctions are not always used or, where they are used, they are not always the most effective sanction. Anti-money laundering and asset recovery powers, then, can offer an alternative. It is in this context that Following the Proceeds of Environmental Crime ‘explores a new frontier in environmental law: the use of financial intelligence to prosecute environmental crime’ (p. 3). In his introductory chapter, editor Gregory Rose notes (at p. 3):

Although the publishers’ summary for this edited collection suggests a focus on ‘the use of cooperative legal measures, particularly anti-money laundering and confiscation of proceeds techniques’,^{Footnote 44} the book only partly delivers in this respect. While the book offers rich information about issues such as the Regional Plan of Action to Promote Responsible Fishing Practices (Chapter 6), the supply and demand gap in the Indonesian timber sector (Chapter 10), the Australian Department of Environment (Chapter 13), and intelligence and environmental regulation (Chapter 14), the promised focus on money laundering and asset recovery, unfortunately, does not fully deliver. Instead, Chapter 7 adopts a different interpretation of ‘laundering’ and ‘proceeds’; the focus in the chapter is on what is termed ‘fish laundering’ (for example, disguising fish from the Atlantic Ocean as catch from the Indian Ocean). At the other end of the spectrum, Chapter 4 only discusses money laundering and asset recovery, with little discussion of how that relates to environmental crime.

That said, some chapters do engage with both environmental crime and money laundering and proceeds of crime legislation. Bricknell’s Chapter 3, entitled ‘What Is Environmental Crime and How Much is Happening in Australia?’, considers the nature and extent of environmental crime and sanctions for environmental offenders. After arguing that criminal penalties might not always be the best approach for both punishment and deterrence purposes, Bricknell considers how confiscation or forfeiture orders might be used to target illicit proceeds of environmental crime. In Chapter 8, MaryAnn Palma-Robles sets out the anti-money laundering law in both the Philippines and Indonesia, though she does acknowledge that ‘such laws do not have specific provisions relating to illegal fishing’ (p. 107). She then goes on to ‘examine the gaps between fisheries and anti-money laundering legislation and tools to find ways to bridge the gaps, pending the adoption of a more comprehensive framework to address the problem’ (p. 110). The discussion in these chapters by Bricknell and Palma-Robles are the extent to which this edited collection explores how anti-money laundering and asset recovery techniques might potentially be used against environmental crime.

Perhaps the high point of this collection is Chapter 9, ‘Following the Proceeds of Bluewater Crime: Case Studies from an Australian Fishery’, in which Ian Parks notes (at p. 118):

Parks subsequently outlines different aspects of money laundering offences – the predicate offence, the conduct element, and the fault element – and uses three case studies to illustrate how money laundering offences might be used against environmental crime. One point worth highlighting is from the first case study, Operation Woodstock, in which the maximum penalty for the money laundering offence was 15 years’ imprisonment, while the maximum penalty for the predicate offence itself was only one year’s imprisonment. Parks then discusses proceeds of crime (and of instrumentalities) and how these can be used in the context of environmental crime.

Another interesting discussion is offered by Anna Sinaga and Sofi Mardiah in Chapter 11, which distinguishes between ‘follow the wood’ and ‘follow the money’ approaches. After contextualizing the issue of forest crime in Indonesia, they make the point that ‘following the wood’ law enforcement does not achieve the best results, either in terms of catching perpetrators or imposing punishment. They further claim that it is ‘near impossible to apprehend the masterminds, the real players. It is only their pawns who are apprehended’ (p. 161). Echoing arguments that have been made in relation to the inefficacy of criminal law processes against those at the upper echelons of large-scale drug trafficking, the authors continue to argue (at p. 161) that:

Sinaga and Mardiah draw upon case studies to suggest that a ‘follow the money’ approach can be more effective than a conventional law enforcement approach, and also allows for state losses to be recovered. However, the authors do recognize significant challenges in this respect. For example, this approach is a novel approach, especially in forest crime, and it will take time for relevant agencies to become accustomed and to fully implement it. This chapter clearly demonstrates how a focus on ‘dirty money’ is not confined, as many might think, to crimes such as drug trafficking, but instead has a much wider reach.

A focus on ‘dirty money’ does have some obvious uses but, in relation to transnational environmental crime, a number of constraints may limit its use and effectiveness. Some of these constraints are discussed in the United Kingdom (UK) context by Duncan Brack (Chapter 12). He refers, for example, to a low level of awareness and virtually no experience of illegal logging issues, and possible links with money laundering. There are also institutional constraints, such as resourcing considerations and operational priorities.

Some specific points of criticism are worth flagging up. In the UK, the National Crime Agency (NCA) became operational in October 2013, yet the book still refers to the now disbanded Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) (p. 55). While this might be attributable to the (inevitable) time lag in publishing the book, it is still somewhat surprising given that the proposal to create the NCA had already been announced in 2012. It is even more surprising to see mention of the Assets Recovery Agency without any mention of its role being absorbed within SOCA in 2008 (p. 175). One issue not really explored is the extensive criticism of anti-money laundering and asset recovery powers, although that could be partly explained by the fact that this edited collection is an initial exploration of the use of these powers against environmental crime.

Overall, despite some shortfalls, the edited volume does demonstrate potential uses for understanding money laundering and asset recovery powers in the context of environmental crime. The book does not deliver fully on its promise of exploring how such powers can be used in dealing with environmental crime, but some individual chapters certainly take up this issue and make a useful contribution.