Human-elephant conflict, associated with the rapidly expanding human population in Southeast Asia and ongoing encroachment of elephant habitat, are another driver for the illegal killing of elephants, even if ivory is not the ultimate motivation for killing. Crop raiding or attacks on humans by elephants in rural areas may lead to retaliation killings as people try to drive them away with fire, muzzle-loaded guns, and crude bombs.

The conversion of forested areas to agriculture has led to serious elephant–human conflicts. In 1985, in Syamtalira Bayu (Indonesia), elephants reportedly destroyed 270,000 rubber seedlings and 14,000 young trees in one plantation. The cost of the damage from three weeks of crop raiding was estimated at US$12,000. It was also reported that between 1993 and 1995, nearly 1 million hectares of rubber and palm-oil plantations were destroyed by marauding elephants.

In addition, human presence in elephant habitat can also lead to fatalities. Between 1993 and 2000, 38 people were killed by elephants in Vietnam. Such human casualties was likely due to elephants moving from one forest fragment to another in the heavily populated areas of Vietnam, where many of which are new economic zones. While the number of elephants that die in such conflicts is much lower than the numbers poached for ivory, hundreds of elephants are killed every year as a result of human-elephant conflict. As the numbers of people continue to increase, elephant–human conflicts are likely to become more frequent.

Read More: Threats, Habitat Loss, Timber Trade and Illegal Logging, The Palm Oil Problem