Times Square Ivory Crushing - On Friday, over a ton of ivory carved decorative objects were crushed in Times Square, New York City. The destruction of the confiscated ivory trinkets was a call to close illegal ivory trade and to stop elephant poaching.

The Time Square ivory crushing event was organized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, New York state agencies and the Wildlife Conservation Society that runs New York City's zoos. Kiiitv.com has learned that U.S. and state government officials, conservationists, animal welfare advocates and event tourists have witnessed as each confiscated ivory object was placed on a conveyor belt before being dropped into the crusher.

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U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell said that the Time Square ivory crushing event will serve as a "stark reminder" to the world that the United States is not tolerating wildlife crimes, especially against iconic and endangered animals. She also emphasized the increasing demand for ivory, which was considered as a low-risk, high-profile market by the international organized crime networks.

Each year, almost 35,000 elephants are slaughtered in Africa. While The Nation noted that 96 elephants fall victim to the illegal trade every day. According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, the illegal ivory trade worldwide is responsible for threatening the survival of African elephants.

"Today's message is this: We plan to crush the ivory trade and crush the profits of the traffickers," Wildlife Conservation Society president Cristian Samper said. While the charity's executive vice president for public affairs John Calvelli added, "Crushing ivory in Times Square - literally at the crossroads of the world - says in the clearest of terms that the U.S. is serious about closing its illegal ivory markets and stopping the demand."

To stigmatize the ivory trade worldwide, several ivory destruction events have been held in the U.S. including the Time Square ivory crushing event on Friday. The pulverized ivory in New York will be combined with the 6 tons that were crushed in Denver in 2013. And it will be used to create a memorial to poached elephants.

Meanwhile, a pioneering study recently revealed that DNA mapping might succeed in helping save African elephants and the ecosystems in which they play a significant role.

In the new study published in the journal Science on Thursday, scientists conducted genetic tests on 28 large ivory seizures, each weighing over half a ton and worth at least $1 million. As previously reported, the results determined the geographic origin of the tusks from the two types of African elephants: the savanna elephant and the somewhat smaller forest elephant.

Identifying the origins of seized ivory helps reveal where law enforcement should focus as well as the schemes used by ivory poachers and traders. The Christian Science Monitor noted that scientists are hopeful that determining the primary areas where elephants are poached could help fight ivory trafficking from its source.

"When you're losing a tenth of the population a year, you have to do something more urgent - nail down where the major killing is happening and stop it at the source," University of Washington biologist and study co-author Samuel Wasser said. 

For now, officials said they are committed to fighting the ivory trade and the Time Square ivory crushing event is just one way to show their willingness to protect the decreasing population of elephants, as well as to combat terrorists who profit from elephant poaching.

TagsTimes Square Ivory Crushing, Times Square, Ivory Crushing, Elephant poaching, DNA, Science, Study