Earth Protect Blog

A growing stash of more than 6 tons of ivory from slaughtered elephants, heaped in a warehouse north of Denver, is about to be destroyed as part of a new U.S. push to combat illegal wildlife trafficking worldwide. Publicly crushing the smuggled tusks and carvings will be the first act to end what has become a $10 billion illegal industry with security implications officials liken to those of illegal drug dealing.

"Our experience is that the only way to end this trade is to get international support. That's the goal of what we're doing with this crush," said Steve Oberholtzer, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service special-agent-in-charge based in Denver, who is lining up rock-grinders to pulverize the ivory in October.

African governments already have destroyed some ivory seized from poachers, U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said Monday at a White House forum where the initiative was launched. "The U.S. supports these actions, and we want to make sure we are doing the same."

President Barack Obama on July 1 issued an order to combat the killing of protected wildlife, stop the trafficking, and reduce demand for illegal rhino horns and ivory. Members of a newly created advisory council sketched a broad approach of enlisting governments, companies and nonprofits worldwide.

Beyond destroying ivory, U.S. officials said they'll give $10 million to help fight poaching in Africa and will try to persuade Asian governments to outlaw trinkets and other products made from elephant ivory. Tactics being considered include use of cellphone technology to monitor elephants, social media campaigning in China and cooperation with companies such as eBay to curb commerce.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said U.S. intelligence agencies recently found that militant groups in Africa, including al-Shabab in Somalia, the Janjaweed in Sudan and Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda, have turned to illegal ivory trafficking for revenues.

This threatens to destabilize Africa, where the U.S. has interests, Clinton said at the White House forum.

The National Wildlife Property Repository — at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge in Commerce City — holds smuggled wildlife parts seized at seaports, border crossings and airports nationwide. These range from leopard and tiger heads to bear claws and crocodile boots.

The warehouse increasingly is stuffed with ivory that no longer fits on shelves. Piles of tusks and boxes full of bracelets and trinkets clutter the floor. Forklifts are used to clear pathways between heavy pallets of the plunder.

Some tusks are from young elephants — representing generations lost because elephants cannot reproduce until age 25 and poachers usually kill elephants before sawing off their tusks.

The seized ivory includes ornate carvings. A pair of 18-inch-tall Asian ivory figurines depicting a classical Chinese lady and gentleman already were labeled with price tags: $7,500 each.

U.S. authorities are prohibited from selling seized items but have debated whether destroying them is the best approach. Ivory sell-offs in 2008 and 2010 supported by the 178-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna proved controversial. Even if U.S. officials could sell seized ivory, some say it would not make a dent in illegal market demand.

Grinding up all ivory in October "will make more room in our warehouse," repository supervisor Bernadette Atencio said.

She fears it will fill again soon.

The African elephant "is a species that could very easily disappear, become extinct," Atencio said. "But we can be an example and hope others follow."

Federal authorities plan to save pieces of crushed ivory to use in a memorial — in Washington D.C. or another appropriate location — to the tens of thousands of elephants killed by people.