Illegal Ivory can be Identified by 'Bomb-curve' Dating Technique

Cold War-era radioactive isotopes can be effectively used in a new dating technique that will help fight the war on illegal wildlife trafficking, according to researchers at Columbia University.

Despite a 1989 international ban on the trade and sale of ivory, the industry has flourished, driven in part by the lack of a reliable way of distinguishing between legal pre-1989 ivory and post-ban ivory. Last year alone, an estimated 30,000 African elephants were killed for their tusks. And in May, a group of armed poachers impersonated members of the Central African Republic's transitional government force and slaughtered 26 elephants at Dzanga Bai, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The new ivory dating technique relies on radioactive isotopes released into the air in the 1950s and '60s that took place prior to the ban on above-ground nuclear testing in 1963, National Geographic reports.

By using the so-called bomb-curve dating of the carbon-14 isotope, the time an elephant died or was killed can be determined within one year.

"We've developed a tool that allows us to determine the age of a tusk or piece of ivory, and this tells us whether it was acquired legally," study leader Kevin Uno, a postdoctoral researcher at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, said in a news release from the school.

"Our dating method is affordable for government and law enforcement agencies and can help tackle the poaching and illegal trade crises."

The announcement comes at the same time as a heightened call for more action against the illegal wildlife trade. On Monday US President Barack Obama issued an executive order that called for the creation of a presidential taskforce on wildlife trafficking as well as $10 million in support funding for counter-poaching efforts in Africa.

The illegal trade of animals or animal parts has seen all-time financial highs in recent years. The illicit industry is believed to generate as much as $10 billion a year, placing it among the ranks of human trafficking, the drug trade, counterfeiting and the illegal arms trade, according to a Washington Post report.

Carter Roberts, president and CEO of the U.S. arm of the World Wildlife Fund, praised Obama's call for greater protection of animals.

"The planet's most majestic species are being massacred for nothing nobler than vacation trinkets, hangover remedies and false promises of miracle cancer cures," Roberts said, according to a WWF report.

"These syndicates are robbing Africa of its wealth. President Obama's commitment to help stop the global crime wave that is emptying the continent's forests and savannas is welcome news."

Researchers hope that the new bomb-curve dating technique along with an existing DNA test that reveals the geographic origins of the ivory will play a role in quelling the illegal ivory trade.

"The DNA test tells us where the ivory came from, [and] bomb-curve dating tells us when. With the where and the when in hand, we can focus anti-poaching efforts on the hot spots," Uno told National Geographic.

"This is truly a case of scientists using lemons to make lemonade," he said. "It's a huge gift to science."

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