UN group rejects ban on polar bear parts trade

A US-backed proposal to ban trade in polar bear skins and body parts has been voted down today by UN members.

The proposal was defeated on the grounds that there is little evidence the sales are hurting the endangered mammal, and the ban would damage the hunting economics of aboriginal communities in regions where the bears live.

The US argued at the 175-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species in Doha, Qatar, that the trade is adding to the threat posed to polar bears due to habitat loss from climate change.

The bears number between 20,000 and 25,000, mostly in Canada.

Canada led opposition to the proposal alongside Norway and Greenland.