Shut down of Ivory trade in California
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Posted by: Rosanna Post Reply
10/05/2015, 08:42:00

In the news this morning - California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a statute that makes the purchase or sale of ivory illegal. The law bans the sale, offer for sale, possession with intent to sell, and importation with intent to sell of elephant, mammoth, narwhal, whale, walrus and hippo ivory, along with rhinoceros horn. It also increases penalties for traffickers to up to roughly $50,000 and/or one year in prison. The bill contains limited exceptions for antique musical instruments that have proper documentation showing they're old and antique objects comprised of less than 5% ivory, as the vast majority of the illegal ivory trade involves objects made entirely or almost entirely of ivory. The law goes into effect next July 1.

This law closes a loophole which allowed the sale of ivory imported before 1977 - which was essentially impossible to verify.

CA is considered to be the third largest ivory market in the country, and joins New York and New Jersey in banning ivory sales. Estimates are that up to 90% of the ivory for sale in Los Angeles and approximately 80% of the ivory for sale in San Francisco is likely illegal under the pre-existing California law.



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