The Center for Biological Diversity and Natural Resources Defense Council sued the Trump administration on Monday for allowing hunters to import elephant and lion trophies from Zimbabwe.
The suit comes several days after the Interior Department’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reversed an Obama-era ban on elephant trophy imports. Fish and Wildlife also recently approved lion trophy imports from Zimbabwe.
President Trump, after a public outcry, put a “hold” on his administration’s decision Friday, and on Sunday, said he is leaning toward making a final decision to not allow permits for trophy elephants.
Environmental groups say they want a firm commitment from Trump.
“The Trump administration must clearly and permanently halt imports of lion and elephant trophies to protect these amazing animals from extinction,” said Tanya Sanerib, a senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. “Trump’s abrupt backpedaling after public outcry, while appreciated, shows how arbitrary this deplorable decision was. These incredibly imperiled creatures need a lot more than vague promises.”
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, argues that the Trump administration acted arbitrarily in allowing the import of lion and elephant trophies from Zimbabwe and violated the Endangered Species Act in doing so.
“Putting trophy imports ‘on hold’ isn’t enough,” said Elly Pepper, deputy director of Wildlife Trade for the Natural Resources Defense Council. “Elephants are in crisis now. If we don’t force the administration to completely revoke its decision, President Trump could quietly start allowing these imports as soon as he stops facing criticism on Twitter.”
The Fish and Wildlife Service announced Friday that killing elephants in the African nation of Zimbabwe on or after Jan. 21, 2016, and on or before Dec. 31, 2018, “will enhance the survival of the African elephant,” according to a notice published in the Federal Register.
African elephants are considered threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
While elephant trophies from other countries with large elephant herds are allowed, Zimbabwe has been a special case for years. The Obama administration had determined its conservation practices were not strong enough for the U.S. to allow trophy imports from there. The Obama Interior Department placed a suspension on trophy exports from the country in 2014 and 2015.
Under U.S. law, the remains of African elephant can be imported only if federal officials have determined that hunting them benefits the species more broadly. The fees paid to hunt the elephants are supposed to go into conservation programs for the animals.
