Stupid federal overreach. If you want elephants to flourish, make the harvesting of ivory legal and give the natives incentives for managing herds and punishing (killing) poachers.
I agree, and capitalism would do this best: You could even turn the poachers into protectors by allowing them to OWN herds, and then educate them that the more elephants alive, the more that will reproduce. Then if you over time allow for elephants to die out natually, the ivory could be collected.