March 29 (UPI) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Friday finalized a rule to improve conservation and other protections of African elephants imported to the United States.
Friday’s rule change “will strengthen protections of internationally traded live African elephants, increase transparency of the Service’s permit decision-making, and more closely align U.S. requirements with guidance from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Fauna and Flora,” the agency said in a news release.
“The Service values collaborative conservation of wildlife all around the world and is committed to improving implementation of international conservation law,” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams said.
The changes require that countries that import elephants to the United States implement laws to increase conservation and protection including barring illegal trade and that authorized imports of both live elephants and “trophies” will contribute to conservation efforts and not cause the species to decline.
It also requires that elephants only be sent to facilities that are equipped to house and care for them when they arrive in the United States.
Lastly, the rule clarifies import regulations on sport hunting and permit requirements.
In 2017, the Trump administration lifted an Obama-era ban on the import of endangered elephant remains from Africa. This comes as the Biden administration has been taking steps to strengthen many animal conservation policy reversals under Trump.
“Our actions today will help support range countries’ efforts to manage and conserve African elephant populations and will further protect African elephants that are imported to the United States,” Williams added. “We are optimistic that with this final rule and by continuing to work in partnership with range countries, wild African elephant populations will be sustainable into the future.”
The agency says the African elephant in the wild has been reduced down to an estimated 415,000 from roughly 26 million at the end of the 18th century.
