Ivory Crush
The Repository was the facilitator of the November 2013 “Ivory Crush” event which occurred on the same National Wildlife Refuge (Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge) that the Repository is located on. Following this momentous event countries including China, Japan, Philippines, Germany, and France have either destroyed their stockpiles of ivory or have made a commitment to do so. The goal of the United States Ivory Crush was to raise awareness about the illegal trafficking of elephant ivory and the poaching of elephants to support the unlawful ivory trade. Approximately six tons of elephant ivory was crushed that had been confiscated over a period of 25 years.
11/13/2013 News Release
What Supporters Said
11/13/2013 Director’s Blog
Event B-roll
Event Photos
Ivory Photos
U.S. Fish and Wildlife and conservation partners held a follow up crush which occurred in New York City in June 2015. One million pounds of ivory was crushed in the middle of Times Square to raise additional awareness of illegal wildlife trade and to reduce demand for ivory and ivory products.
Learn more about the 2015 U.S. Ivory Crush at Times Square here:
https://www.fws.gov/le/elephant-ivory-crush.html