(Press Release)
NEW YORK, N.Y. – The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (“USFWS”) has announced that its Office of Law Enforcement’s National Wildlife Repository in Commerce City, CO, will now be accepting donations of legally owned ivory products.
This service is based on the demand from ivory owners who wish to safely and legally dispose of objects they currently own to help reduce the overall ivory market. The USFWS will accept donations of ivory and ivory products which are the legally owned personal property of the donor(s). This can include antique items, which can currently be sold with some restrictions, as well as those ivory items which are not antiques, but are now prohibited from commercial trade by state or federal law. The items donated will be used primarily to educate the public about the ivory trade and animal conservation, and will not be returned to the commercial market.
Any ivory donations should be sent via USPS, UPS, Federal Express or other appropriate method to the Repository at the following address:
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
National Wildlife Property Repository
6550 Gateway Road, Bldg. 128
Commerce City, CO 80022
Attn: Ivory Donations
Donations should be accompanied by a letter addressed to the Repository containing the following information:
- Description of the item(s) of legally-obtained ivory being donated
- Name and address of the donor(s)
- A statement certifying that the donor(s) is/are the sole legal owner(s) of the property being donated and that by submitting such ivory to the repository they relinquish all rights to such property, without condition, to the FWS
The cost of shipping items to the Repository, as well as insuring the value of the items during shipping (if any) is the sole responsibility of the donor, and the USFWS will not value any such donated items.
Further information about the Repository is available here. For questions about the ivory trade, or other plant and wildlife issues, please contact Sara Yood, JVC’s Assistant General Counsel, at sara@jvclegal.org or 212-997-2002.