Hearing Could Pave Way For Stronger Ivory Regulations

New York could be in for an update to its ivory sales regulations.

The Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee is set to host a public hearing in Manhattan at 11 a.m. the discuss state laws combating the illegal ivory trade.

According to a meeting notice, the state Department of Environmental Conservation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seized more than $2 million worth of elephant ivory in New York City in 2012. Assemblyman Robert Sweeney, the chair of the Environmental Conservation Committee, said that the United States is the second-largest importer of illegal ivory behind China, and New York is the primary market.

Testimony from the hearing, which is slated to feature representatives from Tanzania, Botswana, the state DEC and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, is expected to be used to create legislation to update the laws on the books, Sweeney said.

“There’s no question that the result of this hearing will be legislation that I would expect to act on this session,” he said.