fbpx
Connect with us

World

Hong Kong Starts Destroying Ivory Cache

Published

on

A security guard stands next to confiscated ivory which will be destroyed at a chemical waste treatment center in Hong Kong Thursday, May 15, 2014. Hong Kong has started incinerating its nearly 30-ton stockpile of confiscated ivory to show it's serious about cracking down on an illegal wildlife trade that is devastating Africa's elephant population. Authorities on Thursday destroyed the first batch by burning a metric ton of elephant tusks in a rotary kiln. Destroying the stockpile, which is one of the world's biggest, is expected to take up to two years.  (Kin Cheung/AP)

A security guard stands next to confiscated ivory which will be destroyed at a chemical waste treatment center in Hong Kong Thursday, May 15, 2014. Hong Kong has started incinerating its nearly 30-ton stockpile of confiscated ivory to show it’s serious about cracking down on an illegal wildlife trade that is devastating Africa’s elephant population. Authorities on Thursday destroyed the first batch by burning a metric ton of elephant tusks in a rotary kiln. Destroying the stockpile, which is one of the world’s biggest, is expected to take up to two years. (Kin Cheung/AP)

 

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong started incinerating its nearly 30-ton stockpile of confiscated ivory on Thursday to show it’s serious about cracking down on an illegal wildlife trade that is devastating Africa’s elephant population.

Authorities destroyed the first batch by burning a metric ton of elephant tusks and carved ivory figurines and bracelets in a rotary kiln.

Destroying the 28-ton stockpile, which is one of the world’s biggest, is expected to take until mid-2015. The fine dark gray ash left after incineration will be mixed with cement and lime and dumped in a landfill. About 1.6 tons of ivory will be kept for educational or scientific purposes.

The destruction follows similar initiatives in the past year by Belgium, France, China, the U.S. and the Philippines.

Hong Kong’s stockpile has bulged as customs agents have intercepted a series of big shipments of smuggled ivory in recent years. The busts highlight the former British colony’s role as a transshipment hub for ivory shipped from Africa to mainland China, where demand is growing because of rising incomes.

Ivory can fetch up to $2,400 a kilogram in China, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare, which estimates poachers kill 35,000 elephants a year for their tusks, risking the animal’s extinction in the wild.

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE NEWS UPDATES IN YOUR INBOX


Sign up to receive the latest news in your inbox

* indicates required

Like BlackPressUSA on Facebook

Advertisement

Advertise on BlackPressUSA

advertise with blackpressusa.com