White House plan would ramp up wildlife trafficking enforcement

To ramp up the fight against wildlife trafficking, the Obama administration today rolled out a new defense plan mainly focused on increasing U.S. and global enforcement efforts. The three-pronged implementation plan for the National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking also aims to reduce demand for endangered species and products made from them as well as to increase international cooperation to address the growing challenge. The strategy to reduce the multibillion-dollar illicit market was announced by the White House last year (E&ENews PM, Feb. 11, 2014). Some of the notable enforcement objectives include working with Congress to increase penalties for wildlife trafficking and to direct proceeds from the illegal trade into additional enforcement. The plan specifically highlighted S. 27, a bipartisan bill to prosecute wildlife trafficking under federal racketeering and money laundering statutes...more