14 DAY TRIAL // This October 8, the US was supposed to publicly destroy about 6 tons of ivory confiscated from traffickers and tourists since 1989, when a global ban that made it illegal for people to buy and/or sell this material was issued, until present day.
Thanks to the government shutdown, the much anticipated ivory crush did not take place. Live Science details that the destruction of the US' ivory stockpile was to be carried out north of Denver, at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge in Commerce City, Colorado.
It was canceled because the country's Fish and Wildlife Service no longer had money to see this operation through, the same source tells us.
The ivory crush is expected to be rescheduled, but detailed information on the topic has not yet been shared with the public.
As reported, the destruction of these 6 tons of ivory was intended to send a message to poachers. More precisely, it was supposed to let them know that the US does not and will not ever tolerate the illegal wildlife trade.