Nearly 2 tons of illegal ivory to be crushed in New York

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Nearly two tons of ivory tusks, statues and jewelry were set to be destroyed in New York City on Thursday morning to demonstrate the state government's commitment to cracking down on the illegal ivory trade.

The New York Department of Environmental Conservation organized the event in partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Society and Tiffany & Co., with officials saying ivory artifacts with a value of 8 million US dollars had been seized from dealers in the last three years.

Ivory artifacts seized by New York state investigators that will be crushed in New York City's Central Park. /AP Photo

Tusks of at least 100 slaughtered elephants were expected to be crushed at 10:30 a.m. local time in New York City's Central Park.

This is the second time in two years that New York State has destroyed illegal ivory, in events designed to attract more worldwide attention to elephants' protection amid a poaching crisis.

Poster from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC‍)/ NDRC

According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, it is predicted that African forest elephants could be extinct within less than a decade, and African savanna elephant population declined by 30 percent between 2007 and 2014.

The ivory artifacts confiscated by state investigators will head for a rock crusher as a result of the New York ivory ban on the sale of ivory passed in 2014 and the imposition of harsher penalties for illegal trade in wildlife products of endangered species.

New York officials with illegal ivory artifacts due to be crushed in Central Park, New York City, US. /WCS Newsroom's Twitter photo

International trade in ivory has been banned since 1990, but domestic sales of ivory are still allowed in many countries, including the US and China, which has created loopholes for smugglers.

Early this year, China announced its determination to smash the ivory trade and production. The government is aiming to shut down all commercial activities in the ivory market by the end of 2017.

Ivory artifacts. /NYS DEC Photo

“China’s announcement is a game changer for elephant conservation,” asserted Carter Roberts, head of the World Wildlife Fund.

Grouping the moves by China and the US, Carter said that "two of the world's largest ivory markets have taken action that will reverberate around the world."

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