BLADE Staff

New Mammoth and Elephant Ivory Bans

New laws in three states target mammoth ivory—ivory of an animal that has been extinct for several millennia—elephant ivory or both for bans, according to the Elephant Protection Association.

“Illinois and New Hampshire are the most recent states that will enact bans,” noted the association’s Sandra Brady. “This follows Nevada, which enacted their ban, including mammoth and fossil ivories, earlier in the year.”

The Illinois ban includes both elephant and mammoth ivory, while the New Hampshire ban is on elephant ivory only.

Brady said the latter two bans go into effect Jan. 1, 2019.

According to the latest lists BLADE® was able to obtain, states that ban the sale of mammoth ivory in addition to Nevada include California, Hawaii, New Jersey and New York. States with proposed legislation in process that would include banning mammoth ivory are Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Michigan, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

There are probably more as well.

Specifics of the Bans

Illinois HB4843 will ban “any tooth or tusk composed of ivory from any animal, including, but not limited to, an elephant, hippopotamus, mammoth, narwhal, walrus, or whale, or any piece thereof, whether raw ivory or worked ivory, or made into, or part of, an ivory product.”

New Hampshire SB 451 will ban elephant but not mammoth or walrus ivory.

Nevada SB 194 reads “a person shall not purchase, sell, offer for sale or possess with intent to sell any item that is, wholly or partially, made of an animal part or byproduct derived from a shark fin, a lion of the species Panthera leo or any species of elephant, rhinoceros, tiger, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, pangolin, sea turtle, ray, mammoth, narwhal, walrus or hippopotamus,” except as otherwise provided by state law.

Why Mammoth Ivory Bans?

Though bans on elephant ivory have many supporters, the bans adversely affect the local populations of Africans who depend on the legal trade in ivory for their economic well-being. Also, the elephant ivory ban is resulting in an overpopulation of elephants in some areas of Africa, an overpopulation that unduly taxes the environment at the expense of other wild animals.

As a result, as Brady noted, “Several bird species are hanging on by a thread or have disappeared altogether, and much of the habitat is being destroyed. We don’t know how bad the trickle-down effect will ultimately be, but you can be sure that it will not be good.”

Ironically, not only does banning elephant ivory impact both the pocketbooks and habitat of Africans, it also has resulted in the banning of the ivory of mammoth, a creature that has not walked the earth for 4,000 years. The reason is simple enough: money. The state governments cannot even afford to administer the fallout from their own wrongheaded bans on elephant ivory.

According to The Journal of Paleontological Sciences, smugglers have been marking shipments of elephant ivory as fossil or mammoth ivory to get them past U.S. Customs. While the differences between elephant and mammoth ivory have been recognized for some time—see this website for more on how to tell the differences—five state legislatures seem to have decided to save money and simply banned all ivory. New York and New Jersey were the first states to do so.

According to its mission statement, the Elephant Protection Association opposes such overbroad and harmful bans that undermine successful conservation programs, and raises funds for animal rights aligned groups only. For more information visit elephantprotection.org.

Wayne Goddard, BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame® member, ABS master smith and long-time BLADE® Magazine field editor, has passed away.

Goddard was widely respected and loved throughout the knife industry for his undying mentorship to bladesmiths and knifemakers everywhere. He was a prolific writer, and his Question & Answer column in BLADE Magazine was regularly one of the magazine’s most popular features in reader surveys, with Wayne also being picked as the most popular BLADE writer in those same reader surveys. On at least one occasion he was referred to as “The BLADE Answer Man.” He also wrote a column on knife steels for BLADE.

His books $50 Knife Shop and The Wonder of Knifemaking remain popular.

A long-time member of the Knifemakers’ Guild, he designed knives for Spyderco and taught bladesmithing at locations throughout the USA. His sharpening seminars at both the BLADE Show and BLADE Show West were among the best attended of each show’s seminars for many years.

There will be more here on his passing and in BLADE Magazine as details emerge. May he rest in peace.

Knifemakers and Fans React

From BLADE‘s Facebook page:

Benchmade founder and BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall of Fame® member, Les de Asis, is stepping down as head of day-to-day operations of the Oregon City-based knife company. His son, Jon, will step into that role, effective Nov. 5, 2018. It marks the first significant changing of the guard in the 31-year-old Benchmade, although Les will remain on in strategic positions as CEO and chairman.

The following release from Benchmade explains the transition in detail.

Knife-industry icon Les de Asis, founder of Benchmade, has announced he is handing responsibilities for daily operations and leadership to his son, Jon deAsis, who has been promoted to president of the family-owned business. Jon will oversee a team of nearly 400 employees in the Oregon City, OR, headquarters and manufacturing facility, which produces a range of premium knives for the hunting, tactical, enthusiast and outdoor recreation markets. Les de Asis will maintain his role as CEO and Chairman of the Board, guiding the company’s overall strategy and direction.

Jon deAsis grew up with the Benchmade brand, spending his life learning the family business and preparing himself through various roles within and outside of the company. Prior to taking on this new position, Jon spent three years as the vice president of operations at Benchmade, overseeing the brand’s production and rapid growth in Oregon City. During his tenure Benchmade continued to upgrade and strengthen its manufacturing and service capacity in order to provide the highest level of service to its customers.

“I am humbled and overjoyed to have Jon move into this role and feel that this is a great step forward for the organization,” said Les de Asis. “The company and family at Benchmade have been my life’s work since we opened our doors in 1987. Nothing means more to me than the passion, quality, commitment and energy each and every member of our team has dedicated to building the best knives in the world. I know that Jon is the right choice to help continue that drive well into the future and bring Benchmade to a new generation of customers.”

Benchmade has posted eight consecutive years of double-digit growth. The company operates out of a state-of-the-art facility with more than 144,000 square feet of manufacturing space producing products for professionals and enthusiasts alike. The company produces 60 product lines including popular items that have been on the market since the early 1990s.

“I couldn’t be more proud and excited to continue building on my father’s work. Benchmade is a shining example of how a U.S.-based manufacturing operation can continue to thrive by creating premium-quality, highly coveted products with a relentless focus on progress,” said Jon deAsis. “The talent we have assembled in Oregon City is second to none and I’m thrilled to be working with such a strong team in continuing to grow the business.”