Belgium destroys ivory to raise awareness of illegal trade
Reuters
2014-04-09
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With engines humming and cameras rolling, officials in Belgium are destroying ivory.
The country is raising awareness about the illegal trade and the risk it poses to elephant populations.
This seizure from Wednesday includes 1.7 tons of ivory - coming in complete tusks, and as finished products like statuettes and jewelry.
The ivory has a wholesale black market value of up to $1,200 per kilogram.
The NGO, International Fund for Animal Welfare, estimates that the illegal ivory trade has double since 2007.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF ANIMAL WELFARE GROUP 'INTERNATIONAL FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE' (IFAW), AZZEDINE DOWNES, SAYING:
"This is a huge problem, and there's an urgency to it - 500,000 elephants left in the world estimated. Up to 50,000 elephants a year are being killed. So if you do the math, that leaves 10 years. Ten years left. And if it's not stopped, we in fact, could lose elephant populations."
Belgium is a major tr
The country is raising awareness about the illegal trade and the risk it poses to elephant populations.
This seizure from Wednesday includes 1.7 tons of ivory - coming in complete tusks, and as finished products like statuettes and jewelry.
The ivory has a wholesale black market value of up to $1,200 per kilogram.
The NGO, International Fund for Animal Welfare, estimates that the illegal ivory trade has double since 2007.
(SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF ANIMAL WELFARE GROUP 'INTERNATIONAL FUND FOR ANIMAL WELFARE' (IFAW), AZZEDINE DOWNES, SAYING:
"This is a huge problem, and there's an urgency to it - 500,000 elephants left in the world estimated. Up to 50,000 elephants a year are being killed. So if you do the math, that leaves 10 years. Ten years left. And if it's not stopped, we in fact, could lose elephant populations."
Belgium is a major tr
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