GAIA

 

how NOT to save Africa's elephants

 

Again, as happens every few years, another African country has initiated a burn off of its massive stockpile of elephant tusks seized from ivory poachers.

    

In this case, the country is Kenya and the mass burn off began March 3, World Wildlife Day. It will continue to the end of the year and will destroy a stockpile of seized elephant tusks amounting to 100 metric tons. (Time,  March 16, 2015, p15.)  

The giant pyres make for a good photo ops as world media cover the spectacular bonfires and government officials get positive publicity and world accolades for their determination and efforts to stop the slaughter of Africa's wild elephants by poachers.

 

I blog about this every few years as this government destruction of hundreds of thousands of tusks is misguided and in fact helps preserve and perpetuate the poaching industry!

Put simply, the fires and tusk destruction  violate the basic principle of Economics 101: supply and demand.

Yes, Western nations are outlawing the use and import of objects made with elephant ivory: from beautifully carved figurines and jewelry created by highly skilled craftsmen and artists in the Middle and Far East to piano keys and violin bow ends.

 

But demand in over half the world continues to be strong and will continue to grow as more and more people in China and India and adjoining countries become more prosperous and can afford ivory items long held as highly desirable works of art.¹

 

So demand will not -- in the near or even mid-range future -- decline.

 

As for the market 'supply' part of the equation, put simply, governments destroying vast quantities of seized tusks simply ensures 'supply' will be reduced to what poachers can steal -- thereby ensuring the price for ivory will continue to be high and poaching lucrative for the gang leaders and middlemen.

 

Since 2010, it is estimates some 30,000 to 35,000 elephants are killed each year for their tusks², i.e. for 60,000 to 70,000 tusks (at two per elephant). 

 As just under 40 tons represent 4000 dead elephants³, the 100 metric tons to be destroyed in Kenya by the government represents some 10,000 dead elephants – or some 1/3 of all elephants killed annually!!!.

 

As well, with the current going rate in China of $2,100.00 per kilogram of ivory (triple what it was 4 years ago)⁴, the 100 metric tons to be destroyed would be worth $210,000,000.00.

 

If African governments and/or some international organization such as the UN would sell the confiscated tusks in a controlled manner -- and funnel the profits into animal welfare programs and educational campaigns in the East and Middle East -- an increase of legitimate ivory on the open market would substantially reduce poaching and may even squeeze out poacher networks.

Confiscated tusks -- instead of being pointlessly destroyed in a show of bravado -- could be sold and turned into a positive.

 

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1. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/14/china-boom-fuels-africa-poaching

2. http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-28842965

3. http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/09/what-is-it-about-an-elephants-tusks-that-make-them-so-valuable/262021/

4. http://iworry.org/smuggled-elephant-ivory-price-triples-2100-per-kg-china/