President Donald Trump's administration is seeking to reverse a three-year-old ban on transporting hunted elephant trophies from Zimbabwe and Zambia back to the U.S.
A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official told ABC News that the government has received new information from officials in the two African countries that meet a provision under the Endangered Species Act.
The terms allow the government to issue permits to import hunters' trophies of elephants they've killed if there is evidence that it actually benefits conservation of the species.
"Legal, well-regulated sport hunting as part of a sound management program can benefit the conservation of certain species by providing incentives to local communities to conserve the species and by putting much-needed revenue back into conservation," a Fish and Wildlife spokesperson said in a statement.
A notice about the policy change with more specifics regarding the new information will be posted in the Federal Register Friday.
The notice claims that officials in Zimbabwe have made several key changes since the ban was put in place by the previous administration in 2014. Those efforts include working harder to crack down on poaching, implementing a new system to report financial benefit from U.S. hunters and being more transparent about how officials establish hunting quotas.
Zambian officials are carrying out similar measures, the notice states.
The spokesperson told ABC News that the decision applies to elephants hunted in Zimbabwe on or after January 21, 2016, and on or before December 31, 2018, as well as elephants hunted in Zambia at any point during 2016, 2017 and 2018 for applications that meet all other applicable permitting requirements.
The reversal is likely to be met with mixed feelings from the tourism industry.
Geoffrey Kent, the Founder, Chairman and CEO of luxury tour operator Abercrombie & Kent, told TravelPulse that "hunting is not sustainable and provides cover for the illegal trade in ivory."
"Public attitudes toward hunting have changed dramatically since I started Abercrombie & Kent in 1962. We were the first to introduce luxury tented safaris with the philosophy of 'shoot with a camera, not with a gun,'" said Kent. "Fifty years later most safaris are photographic safaris, and prospective travelers can choose countries committed to sustainable conservation practices that protect wildlife and share the economic benefits of wildlife tourism directly with local communities."
"I urge the U.S. government to keep the ban on elephant trophies in place."
Earlier this year, the president of Zimbabwe's Association of Tourism and Safari Operators, Clement Mukwasi told The Sunday News that eliminating the ban would boost tourism in the region.
"The waiver will create employment and reduce environmental degradation. Hunters usually spend a minimum of two weeks in Zimbabwe," said Mukwasi. "After hunting they then tour the country before leaving and all this generates foreign currency at the same time promoting tourism."
Last year's Great Elephant Census reported that Savanna elephant populations declined by 30 percent across 18 African countries during a seven-year period from 2007 to 2014.
In 2015, Zimbabwe suspended the hunting of lions, leopards and elephants outside of Hwange National Park after the polarizing case of Cecil the lion. Meanwhile, officials in Zambia have banned elephant hunting in the past.
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