EBay Bans Ivory Sales

Total ban announced ahead of report showing site fuels trade in wildlife products
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 22, 2008 4:23 AM CDT
EBay Bans Ivory Sales
National Parks Board officials carry a large elephant tusk in the stockpile storeroom at Skukuza in the Kruger National Park, South Africa.    (AP Photo/Denis Farrell )

EBay will introduce a total ban on ivory sales after the holidays in a bid to prevent elephant poaching, Ars Technica reports. The company banned international sales of ivory on its site in 2007 but critics say it did little to halt the trade in illegal ivory. Conservationists estimate 20,000 elephants are killed every year for their tusks.

EBay's move to clamp down on ivory sales came just before the release of an investigative report by the International Fund for Animal Welfare that found 73% of illegal wildlife transactions over a 3-month period occurred on eBay—the bulk of them dealing in ivory. "There are hardcore dealers who are using eBay to get the ivory out there illegally," IFAW's director told National Geographic. (More elephant stories.)

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