African Elephants: Should the trade ban be lifted? - Public licence
Discussions regarding trade in elephant tusks have tended to dominate CITES (Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species) meetings for many years. Many African Elephant species are listed as endangered by the IUCN and most count as Appendix I banned trade items under CITES.
Yet several African nations have submitted motions to allow restricted trade on their own elephant populations, in some cases on repeat occasions. Ivory is big business, particularly in Asia, where there is a high demand for it for use in traditional family seals, handicrafts and art work. Furthermore, combating elephant poaching is a costly process and many nations argue that the proceeds for managed sales of elephant tusks could be used to help conserve them.
In 1989, African Elephants were listed under CITES as an Appendix 1 endangered species, effectively banning the international trade in ivory. A number of petitions to downgrade the listing by some African nations were rejected in subsequent years, until 1997 when Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe were allowed to sell raw ivory stocks to Japan in a one off sale. Petitions to allow further trade in 2000 were rejected.
In 2002 Namibia, Botswana and South Africa were allowed to trade a further 60 tons, and in 2008 a further seven tonnes were sold, fetching around £700,000 from bidders in Japan and China. A subsequent 10-year moratorium was imposed on further proposals for ivory trade - yet in 2010, ivory trade discussions are back on the table. This time, it is Tanzania and Zambia who are the main protagonists.
Before the 1950s it is estimated that there were around 5 million elephants in the wild. But the increasing globalization of trade coupled with ready markets in Asia meant that the ivory trade boomed in the subsequent decades. In the 1980s it is estimated that 100,000 elephants were being killed a year, decimating herds by upward of 80% in some regions – Kenya suffered the worst, losing 85% of its population between 1979 and 1983.
Yet in other countries, such as Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa, populations were either sustained or even increased. This geographical disparity that has caused disagreement over the best way of handling the ivory trade.
Those who argue for regulation believe that money made from the sale of ivory could be invested in stopping poaching. Poaching in many regions is on the increase. In 2007, 45 elephants were killed by poachers in Kenya, but in 2009 that figures was 271. For poachers the high value of ivory as a commodity and the ready markets in Asia make poaching worth the risk.
But others believe that the rise in poaching has come about as a direct result of the ivory sales in 2008 and that legalising the trade in ivory would simply lead to market growth. Moses Litoroh, one of the co-ordinators of Kenya's elephant programme, has described that market as 'insatiable' and believes that the evidence shows that supply of ivory creates further demand.
The IUCN, the parent organisation of CITES, has a commitment to maintaining an a dialogue with human development agencies and a careful approach is needed to balance economic, social and environmental concerns.
While the CITES delegates all realise that the welfare of such species is paramount, disagreement will continue over the best management solutions to ensure that welfare. There are case studies that demonstrate both successes and failures of both blanket bans and management schemes and recommendations based on science are often filled with caveats, due to the difficulty of implementing rigorous methodologies in such complex environments.
Whatever the outcome of the latest petitions, the trade in ivory is a complex issue that is unlikely to disappear in the near future.
References
Telegraph "Elephant Tusks Sold Legally For First Time In A Decade", 28 Oct 2008.
Elephant Voices, "CITES and the Ivory Trade" (January 2010)
CITES (March 16 2010)
Copyright Mark Somerfield. Contact the author to obtain permission for republication.
African Elephants: Should the trade ban be lifted? - Public licence
High demand for ivory in China and Japan - Public licence
Poaching is on the rise in Kenya - Lord Mountbatten$(function() {$(".imageCarousel").jCarouselLite({btnNext: ".next",btnPrev: ".prev",visible: 3});});View the original article here
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