Hong Kong Will Burn Its Massive Stockpile of Illegal Ivory

Elephant fans rejoice, because it appears we've got a global ivory crushing movement on our hands. Today, Hong Kong officials announced plans to destroy the vast majority of its seized ivory stockpile, following hot on the heels of similar moves in China, the US, and the Philippines.

According to an announcement from Hong Kong's Agriculture, Fisheries, and Conservation Department (AFCD), officials have agreed in principle to incinerate most of the country's stockpile, and are currently developing an implementation plan. WildAid says that a total of 28 metric tons of ivory products will be burned, which is by far the largest stockpile yet destroyed. (The Philippines crushed about five tons of ivory, while China and the US destroyed roughly six tons each.)

Officials said incineration of ivory could begin in the latter half of this year, with the whole stockpile being destroyed in a year or two. About 1 metric ton of ivory will be kept for educational purposes, a legal use under CITES, the international according regulating the trade in flora and fauna, including ivory products. AFCD said that ivory is already given on loan to schools to use for conservation education.

Importantly, Hong Kong officials said that any new seizures will also be destroyed, which will help prevent any speculation that a Hong Kong stockpile could be auctioned in the future. With Hong Kong already making regular, enormous seizures of illegal wildlife products, it's good to see the country's government take a step towards removing even the potential of seized products making it back into the market.

Individually, destroying ivory stockpiles won't directly deter poachers or remove illegal ivory from the market. But as a whole, the destruction of ivory stockpiles is an extremely heartening sign that governments are taking anti-ivory messaging seriously, which sends a clear message to citizens that the ivory trade is simply not okay. Reducing ivory demand at the source through increased awareness is of utmost importance to long-term abatement of the ivory trade.

As I wrote about the US's ivory crush, ivory destruction mirrors the highly-publicized busts popular in the drug war, which can have a positive educational effect. And as more countries jump on board, the allure of ivory will continue to be tarnished as something that's both destructive and illegal.

There's also potential for beneficial market effects. China's own crush removed six tons of ivory from a market in which some ivory products are legal and others aren't. That's because of a pair of one-time auctions in 1999 and 2008 in which some countries were able to sell seized ivory to "accredited traders," moves that helped prop up the supply of ivory on the market.

Following the 2008 auction, poaching rates have spiked, with 22,000 elephants killed in 2012 and likely more last year. While the auction itself is only one factor, it does seem clear that by adding more ivory to the market, the auction stimulated demand. It's perhaps a bit counter-intuitive, but more ivory on the market means more ivory is accessible, meaning more people want it; with more demand, more poachers will step up to deliver supply.

By destroying stockpiles, countries make a clear statement that ivory won't be legal in the future, nor that the supply will grow. Presumably, this would send the price of ivory higher, which could spur poachers; at the same time, a smaller supply of ivory may mean less market action, as collectors hold on to their products in the face of increasing crackdowns.

Eliminating poaching and ivory market completely is basically an impossible goal. However, reducing the supply (or perceived supply) by crushing all seized ivory can go a long way towards shrinking the market. Combined with persistent awareness campaigns, such efforts are crucial to quelling ivory demand.

@derektmead