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[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 869 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 869

  To promote biological diversity conservation and cooperation in the 
              Western Hemisphere, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 4, 1993

 Mr. Torricelli (for himself, Mr. Porter, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Oberstar, 
  Mr. Deutsch, Mr. Bonior, Mr. Brown of California, Mr. Coleman, Mr. 
Towns, Mr. Hastings, Mr. Washington, Mr. Moran, Mrs. Byrne, Mr. Andrews 
   of Maine, and Mr. Wynn) introduced the following bill; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To promote biological diversity conservation and cooperation in the 
              Western Hemisphere, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Western Hemisphere Environmental 
Cooperation Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The elements of biological diversity offer many actual 
        and yet-to-be-discovered medical, biotechnological, 
        agricultural, and industrial uses.
            (2) Tropical forests, which contain 50 to 90 percent of the 
        species estimated to exist on the earth, are being cleared at 
        the approximate rate of 17,000,000 hectares per year.
            (3) At the rate that tropical forests are disappearing, 
        scientists estimate conservatively that 5 to 10 percent of 
        tropical forest species could disappear within the next 30 
        years.
            (4) Poverty and limited economic opportunity in Latin 
        America and the Caribbean and other areas of the developing 
        world contribute significantly to the loss of tropical forests 
        and other areas important for biodiversity conservation.
            (5) Cooperation between United States institutions 
        interested in the potential applications of biological 
        resources of tropical forests and other areas rich in 
        biodiversity, and governments and nonprofit organizations in 
        Latin America and the Caribbean interested in preserving 
        biological diversity and enhancing its economic value, can 
        effectively serve the interests of both conservation and 
        economic growth.
            (6) Maintaining access to a continuing and reliable supply 
        of biological resources will enhance United States 
        competitiveness.
            (7) The Convention on Biological Diversity is consistent 
        with the protection of intellectual property rights and with 
        resource exchange agreements.
            (8) As was made evident through the United Nations 
        Conference on Environment and Development, there is 
        international recognition of the important link between the 
        protection of the environment and biodiversity and economic 
        growth.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to encourage the conservation of biological resources 
        and the sustainable use of tropical forests in Latin America 
        and the Caribbean, and to secure a continuing and reliable 
        supply of biological resources for United States companies, 
        research institutes, botanical laboratories, universities, and 
        other institutions interested in the potential uses and 
        benefits of such resources, by--
                    (A) assisting the countries of Latin America and 
                the Caribbean to establish and strengthen biodiversity 
                management organizations;
                    (B) creating incentives for resource-sharing 
                entities to enter into resource exchange agreements 
                with biodiversity management organizations;
                    (C) ensuring that such agreements provide for 
                conservation of biological diversity and for technology 
                transfer and training related to the purposes set forth 
                in the agreements; and
                    (D) ensuring increased understanding of what 
                constitutes properly protected intellectual property 
                rights and fair and equitable distribution of any 
                benefits arising from the commercial or other use of 
                products developed under such agreements; and
            (2) to provide for a study of the feasibility of 
        establishing a Western Hemisphere Environmental Partnership to 
        promote hemispheric technological cooperation on environmental 
        problems.

SEC. 4. WESTERN HEMISPHERE BIODIVERSITY COOPERATION PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--The Administrator of the Agency for 
International Development shall establish within the Agency a Western 
Hemisphere Biodiversity Cooperation Program to assist in the 
establishment and strengthening of biodiversity management 
organizations.
    (b) Uses of Assistance.--Assistance under the program described in 
subsection (a) shall be used to establish biodiversity management 
organizations and strengthen the ability of such organizations to study 
and protect biological diversity and to enhance the economic value of 
the biological resources of Latin America and the Caribbean, including 
assistance for--
            (1) cataloging and studying biological resources;
            (2) preparing data bases of biological resources to be used 
        for monitoring the status and distribution of such resources 
        and for commercial purposes;
            (3) creating the institutional capacity for biodiversity 
        management organizations to negotiate, enter into, and 
        implement resource exchange agreements with resource-sharing 
        entities through training in areas such as research, contract 
        law and negotiation, quality control, and management;
            (4) advising the governments in countries in which 
        biodiversity management organizations operate on legislation 
        and policies that will conserve biological diversity and 
        encourage sustainable economic development;
            (5) facilitating cooperation and exchange of information 
        among such organizations;
            (6) developing and studying the uses of biological samples 
        from tropical forests and other areas rich in biodiversity that 
        may provide sustainable economic opportunities for communities 
        located in or near such forests and areas; and
            (7) facilitating cooperation and close consultation with 
        indigenous peoples in the geographic areas in which 
        biodiversity management organizations operate.
    (c) Debt Exchanges.--Assistance under this section shall include, 
where appropriate, assistance to biodiversity management organizations 
for the purchase on the open market of discounted commercial debt of 
the governments of the countries in which such organizations operate, 
pursuant to the section 462 entitled ``Assistance for Commercial Debt 
Exchanges'', of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2282), in 
order to provide such organizations with a steady income for 
accomplishing the purposes of this section.
    (d) Consultation.--In administering the program described in 
subsection (a), the Administrator shall consult with and use the 
expertise of appropriate United States Government agencies and 
nongovernmental conservation organizations in the United States, Latin 
America, and the Caribbean.
    (e) Collaboration With National Governments.--The Administrator 
shall, in carrying out the program described in subsection (a), 
encourage and seek to facilitate close collaboration between 
biodiversity management organizations and the governments of the 
countries in which the organizations operate.

SEC. 5. WESTERN HEMISPHERE BIODIVERSITY COOPERATION GRANTS.

    (a) Establishment.--In furtherance of section 2(4) and section 
3(1)(B) and (C), the Administrator shall establish, as part of the 
program under section 4, a program of Western Hemisphere Biodiversity 
Cooperation Grants.
    (b) Purpose.--Grants under the program established under subsection 
(a) may be awarded to biodiversity management organizations to 
encourage the conclusion of resource exchange agreements, between such 
organizations and resource-sharing entities, that--
            (1) strengthen the capacity of the organizations to 
        implement such agreements;
            (2) promote the conservation of tropical forests; and
            (3) promote sustainable economic development among the 
        communities living in or near areas rich in biodiversity.
    (c) Authority.--The Administrator may agree to provide a grant 
under this section to a biodiversity management organization in support 
of an agreement with a resource-sharing entity in order to assist the 
organization in fulfilling its obligations to the entity under the 
agreement if, in the judgment of the Administrator, such a grant would 
significantly increase the likelihood that an agreement would be 
concluded or would significantly increase the benefits of the agreement 
for the organization and for the conservation of tropical forests and 
other areas important for biodiversity conservation.
    (d) Criteria.--Among the criteria that the Administrator should use 
in determining whether or not to make a grant under this section to an 
organization with respect to an agreement are whether the agreement 
will provide--
            (1) that at least 50 percent of the value of all benefits 
        provided to the organization by the resource-sharing entity 
        under the agreement will be provided by the organization to the 
        government of the country or countries in which the resources 
        referred to in the agreement originate, for use in the 
        conservation of tropical forests and other areas important for 
        biodiversity conservation;
            (2) that the entity will--
                    (A) give or lend equipment to the organization to 
                carry out the agreement; and
                    (B) train staff of the organization, or staff 
                affiliated with the organization, in carrying out the 
                responsibilities assigned to the organization under the 
                agreement; and
            (3) that the organization assures that intellectual 
        property rights will be properly protected and that the 
        resource-sharing entity assures that any benefits arising from 
        the commercial or other use of products developed under such 
        agreements are shared in a fair and equitable way with the 
        country of origin.
    (e) Characteristics of Grants.--A grant under this section shall--
            (1) be used only to support the purposes of the agreement 
        for which it is provided;
            (2) be not larger than $100,000 for any agreement; and
            (3) represent not more than 20 percent of the initial 
        financial investment of the entity under the agreement.
    (f) United States Not to Receive Proceeds.--The United States shall 
not make, as a condition of any assistance under section 4 or a grant 
under this section, that the United States Government receive any part 
of any proceeds or profits generated under any resource exchange 
agreement entered into by a biodiversity management organization.
    (g) Treatment of Assistance.--Assistance under section 4 and grants 
under this section shall not be considered assistance for purposes of 
any provision of law limiting assistance to any country.

SEC. 6. WESTERN HEMISPHERE ENVIRONMENTAL PARTNERSHIP.

    (a) Study.--The President shall direct an appropriate Federal 
entity to study the feasibility of establishing a Western Hemisphere 
Environmental Partnership to promote hemispheric technological 
cooperation on environmental problems, the purpose of which would be--
            (1) to promote public-private sector partnerships to 
        address environmental problems and to increase environmental 
        protection in the Western Hemisphere;
            (2) to facilitate cooperation between the United States and 
        the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean in the 
        application of technology to environmental problems;
            (3) to provide for the training in sound environmental 
        practices of appropriate personnel from government, industry, 
        and nongovernmental organizations in Latin America and the 
        Caribbean by personnel with appropriate expertise from similar 
        organizations in the United States;
            (4) to develop innovative mechanisms for financing 
        improvements in the environmental protection capacity of 
        countries in Latin America and the Caribbean through debt 
        exchanges, issuance of bonds, and other market-based 
        incentives;
            (5) to help countries in the region to develop appropriate 
        technologies to meet their specific environmental needs; and
            (6) to facilitate information-sharing within the Western 
        Hemisphere on the use of environmental technologies and 
        services to address environmental problems.
    (b) Role of United States Government.--In conducting the study 
under subsection (a), the Committee shall explore the role of the 
United States Government in a Western Hemisphere Environmental 
Partnership.
    (c) Precedents.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), the 
Committee shall take into account the experiences of the United States-
Asia Environmental Partnership and the Caribbean Environment and 
Development Institute.

SEC. 7. REPORTS.

    (a) First Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the Congress a 
report on the implementation of this Act, including--
            (1) the establishment of the Western Hemisphere 
        Biodiversity Cooperation Program under section 4 and the 
        Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Cooperation Grants under 
        section 5; and
            (2) the results of the study of a Western Hemisphere 
        Environmental Partnership under section 6, together with the 
        President's recommendations for action by the Congress.
    (b) Subsequent Annual Reports.--Each year following the report 
referred to in subsection (a), the President shall submit to the 
Congress a further report on the implementation of this Act.

SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this Act--
            (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of 
        the Agency for International Development;
            (2) the term ``biodiversity management organization'' means 
        a nonprofit local or regional organization in Latin America or 
        the Caribbean whose purposes include the study and protection 
        of biological diversity and the enhancement of its economic 
        value;
            (3) the term ``resource-sharing entity'' means a public or 
        private institution in the United States, including a company, 
        research institute, botanical laboratory, or university, that 
        is undertaking activities relating to the potential 
        applications of biological resources of tropical forests and 
        other areas rich in biodiversity; and
            (4) the term ``resource exchange agreement'' means an 
        agreement between a biodiversity management organization and 
        resource-sharing entity under which the biodiversity management 
        organization provides the resource-sharing entity with 
        information on or samples of biological resources in exchange 
        for benefits (including payment of money, technology transfer, 
        or training) provided to the biodiversity management 
        organization.

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