II 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1183 

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to provide assistance to the Government of Haiti to end within 5 years the deforestation in Haiti and 

restore within 30 years the extent of tropical forest cover in existence 

in Haiti in 1990, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 4, 2009 

Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Mr. BROWNBACK) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to provide assistance to the Government of Haiti to end within 5 years 

the deforestation in Haiti and restore within 30 years 

the extent of tropical forest cover in existence in Haiti 

in 1990, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Haiti Reforestation 

5 Act of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
2 

•S 1183 IS

1 (1) the established policy of the Federal Gov2 ernment is to support and seek protection of tropical 

3 forests around the world; 

4 (2) tropical forests provide a wide range of ben5 efits by— 

6 (A) harboring a major portion of the bio7 logical and terrestrial resources of Earth and 

8 providing habitats for an estimated 10,000,000 

9 to 30,000,000 plant and animal species, includ10 ing species essential to medical research and 

11 agricultural productivity; 

12 (B) playing a critical role as carbon sinks 

13 that reduce greenhouse gases in the atmos14 phere, as 1 hectare of tropical forest can absorb 

15 up to approximately 3 tons of carbon dioxide 

16 per year, thus moderating potential global cli17 mate change; and 

18 (C) regulating hydrological cycles upon 

19 which agricultural and coastal resources de20 pend; 

21 (3) tropical forests are also a key factor in re22 ducing rates of soil loss, particularly on hilly terrain; 

23 (4) while international efforts to stem the tide 

24 of tropical deforestation have accelerated during the 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
3 

•S 1183 IS

1 past 2 decades, the rapid rate of tropical deforest2 ation continues unabated; 

3 (5) in 1923, over 60 percent of the land of 

4 Haiti was forested but, by 2006, that percentage 

5 had decreased to less than 2 percent; 

6 (6) during the period beginning in 2000 and 

7 ending in 2005, the deforestation rate in Haiti accel8 erated by more than 20 percent over the deforest9 ation rate in Haiti during the period beginning in 

10 1990 and ending in 1999; 

11 (7) as a result, during the period described in 

12 paragraph (6), Haiti lost— 

13 (A) nearly 10 percent (approximately 

14 11,000 hectares) of the forest cover of Haiti; 

15 and 

16 (B) approximately 22 percent of the total 

17 forest and woodland habitat of Haiti; 

18 (8) poverty and economic pressures are— 

19 (A) two factors that underlie the tropical 

20 deforestation of Haiti; and 

21 (B) manifested particularly through the 

22 clearing of vast areas of forest for conversion to 

23 agricultural uses; 

24 (9) the unemployment rate of Haiti is approxi25 mately 80 percent; 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
4 

•S 1183 IS

1 (10) the per capita income of Haiti is $450 per 

2 year, which is barely one-tenth of the per capita in3 come of Latin America and the Caribbean; 

4 (11) two-thirds of the population of Haiti de5 pend on the agricultural sector, which consists main6 ly of small-scale subsistence farming; 

7 (12) 60 percent of the population of Haiti relies 

8 on charcoal produced from cutting down trees for 

9 cooking fuel; 

10 (13) soil erosion represents the most direct ef11 fect of the deforestation of Haiti, as the erosion 

12 has— 

13 (A) lowered the productivity of the land 

14 due to the poor soils underlying the tropical for15 ests; 

16 (B) worsened the severity of droughts; 

17 (C) led to further deforestation; 

18 (D) significantly decreased the quality and, 

19 as a result, quantity of freshwater and clean 

20 drinking water available to the population of 

21 Haiti; and 

22 (E) increased the pressure on the remain23 ing land and trees in Haiti; 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
5 

•S 1183 IS

1 (14) tropical forests provide forest cover to soft2 en the effect of heavy rains and reduce erosion by 

3 anchoring the soil with their roots; 

4 (15) when trees are cleared, rainfall runs off 

5 the soil more quickly and contributes to floods and 

6 further erosion; 

7 (16) in 2004, Hurricane Jeanne struck Haiti, 

8 killing approximately 3,000, and affecting over 

9 200,000, people, partly because deforestation had re10 sulted in the clearing of large hillsides, which en11 abled rainwater to run off directly to settlements lo12 cated at the bottom of the slopes; 

13 (17) research conducted by the United Nations 

14 Environmental Programme has revealed a direct (89 

15 percent) correlation between the extent of the defor16 estation of a country and the incidence of victims 

17 per weather event in the country; 

18 (18) finding economic benefits for local commu19 nities from sustainable uses of tropical forests is 

20 critical for the long-term protection of the tropical 

21 forests in Haiti; and 

22 (19) tropical reforestation efforts would provide 

23 new sources of jobs, income, and investments in 

24 Haiti by— 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
6 

•S 1183 IS

1 (A) providing employment opportunities in 

2 tree seedling programs, contract tree planting 

3 and management, sustainable agricultural ini4 tiatives, sustainable and managed timber har5 vesting, and wood products milling and fin6 ishing services; and 

7 (B) enhancing community enterprises that 

8 generate income through the trading of sustain9 able forest resources, many of which exist on 

10 small scales in Haiti and in the rest of the re11 gion. 

12 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to provide 

13 assistance to the Government of Haiti to develop and im14 plement, or improve, nationally appropriate policies and 

15 actions— 

16 (1) to reduce deforestation and forest degrada17 tion in Haiti; and 

18 (2) to increase annual rates of afforestation and 

19 reforestation in a measurable, reportable, and 

20 verifiable manner— 

21 (A) to eliminate within 5 years after the 

22 date of enactment of this Act any further net 

23 deforestation of Haiti; and 

24 (B) to restore within 30 years after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act the forest cover 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
7 

•S 1183 IS

1 of Haiti to the surface area that the forest 

2 cover had occupied in 1990. 

3 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis6 trator’’ means the Administrator of the United 

7 States Agency for International Development. 

8 (2) AFFORESTATION.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term 

10 ‘‘afforestation’’ means the establishment of a 

11 new forest through the seeding of, or planting 

12 of tress on, a parcel of nonforested land. 

13 (B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘afforestation’’ 

14 includes the introduction of a tree species to a 

15 parcel of nonforested land of which the species 

16 is not a native species. 

17 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

18 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

19 TITLE I—FORESTATION ASSIST20 ANCE TO GOVERNMENT OF 

21 HAITI 

22 SEC. 101. FORESTATION ASSISTANCE. 

23 (a) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with para25 graph (2), the Secretary, in consultation with the 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
8 

•S 1183 IS

1 Administrator, may offer to enter into agreements 

2 with the Government of Haiti to provide financial 

3 assistance, technology transfers, or capacity building 

4 assistance for the conduct of activities to develop 

5 and implement 1 or more forestation proposals 

6 under paragraph (2)— 

7 (A) to reduce the deforestation of Haiti; 

8 and 

9 (B) to increase the rates of afforestation 

10 and reforestation in Haiti. 

11 (2) PROPOSALS.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for as13 sistance under paragraph (1), the Government 

14 of Haiti shall submit to the Secretary 1 or more 

15 proposals that contain— 

16 (i) a description of each policy and 

17 initiative to be carried out using the assist18 ance; and 

19 (ii) adequate documentation to ensure, 

20 as determined by the Secretary, that— 

21 (I) each policy and initiative will 

22 be— 

23 (aa) carried out and man24 aged in accordance with widely 

25 accepted environmentally sustainVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:52 Jun 05, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1183.IS S1183

wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
9 

•S 1183 IS

1 able forestry and agricultural 

2 practices; and 

3 (bb) designed and imple4 mented in a manner by which to 

5 improve the governance of forests 

6 by building governmental capac7 ity to be more transparent, inclu8 sive, accountable, and coordi9 nated in decisionmaking proc10 esses and the implementation of 

11 the policy or initiative; and 

12 (II) the Government of Haiti will 

13 establish and enforce legal regimes, 

14 standards, and safeguards— 

15 (aa) to prevent violations of 

16 human rights and the rights of 

17 local communities and indigenous 

18 people; 

19 (bb) to prevent harm to vul20 nerable social groups; and 

21 (cc) to ensure that members 

22 of local communities and indige23 nous people in affected areas, as 

24 partners and primary stake25 holders, will be engaged in the 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
10 

•S 1183 IS

1 design, planning, implementation, 

2 monitoring, and evaluation of the 

3 policies and initiatives. 

4 (B) DETERMINATION OF COMPATIBILITY

5 WITH CERTAIN PROGRAMS.—In evaluating each 

6 proposal under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

7 shall ensure that each policy and initiative de8 scribed in the proposal submitted by the Gov9 ernment of Haiti under that subparagraph is 

10 compatible with— 

11 (i) broader development, poverty alle12 viation, and natural resource conservation 

13 objectives and initiatives in Haiti; and 

14 (ii) the development, poverty allevi15 ation, disaster risk management, and cli16 mate resilience programs of the Depart17 ment of Agriculture. 

18 (b) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—Any assistance received 

19 by the Government of Haiti under subsection (a)(1) shall 

20 be used to implement a proposal developed under sub21 section (a)(2), which may include— 

22 (1) the provision of technologies and associated 

23 support for activities to reduce deforestation or in24 crease afforestation and reforestation rates, includ25 ing— 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
11 

•S 1183 IS

1 (A) fire reduction initiatives; 

2 (B) forest law enforcement initiatives; 

3 (C) the development of timber tracking 

4 systems; 

5 (D) the development of cooking fuel sub6 stitutes; 

7 (E) initiatives to increase agricultural pro8 ductivity; 

9 (F) tree-planting initiatives; and 

10 (G) programs that are designed to focus on 

11 market-based solutions, including programs 

12 that leverage the international carbon-offset 

13 market; 

14 (2) the enhancement and expansion of govern15 mental and nongovernmental institutional capacity 

16 to effectively design and implement a proposal devel17 oped under subsection (a)(2) through initiatives, in18 cluding— 

19 (A) the establishment of transparent, ac20 countable, and inclusive decisionmaking proc21 esses relating to all stakeholders (including af22 fected local communities); 

23 (B) the promotion of enhanced coordina24 tion among ministries and agencies responsible 

25 for agroecological zoning, mapping, land planVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:52 Jun 05, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1183.IS S1183

wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
12 

•S 1183 IS

1 ning and permitting, sustainable agriculture, 

2 forestry, and law enforcement; and 

3 (C) the clarification of land tenure and re4 source rights of affected communities, including 

5 local communities and indigenous peoples; and 

6 (3) the development and support of institutional 

7 capacity to measure, verify, and report the activities 

8 carried out by the Government of Haiti to reduce de9 forestation and increase afforestation and reforest10 ation rates through the use of appropriate methods, 

11 including— 

12 (A) the use of best practices and tech13 nologies to monitor any change in the forest 

14 cover of Haiti; 

15 (B) the monitoring of the impacts of poli16 cies and initiatives on— 

17 (i) affected communities; 

18 (ii) the biodiversity of the environment 

19 of Haiti; and 

20 (iii) the health of the tropical forests 

21 of Haiti; and 

22 (C) independent and participatory forest 

23 monitoring. 

24 (c) DEVELOPMENT OF PERFORMANCE METRICS.— 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
13 

•S 1183 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary provides as2 sistance under subsection (a)(1), in accordance with 

3 paragraph (2), the Secretary, in cooperation with 

4 the Government of Haiti and, if necessary, in con5 sultation with the Administrator, shall develop ap6 propriate performance metrics to measure, verify, 

7 and report— 

8 (A) the conduct of each policy and initia9 tive to be carried out by the Government of 

10 Haiti; 

11 (B) the results of each policy and initiative 

12 with respect to the tropical forests of Haiti; and 

13 (C) each impact of each policy and initia14 tive on the local communities and indigenous 

15 people of Haiti. 

16 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—Performance metrics de17 veloped under paragraph (1) shall, to the maximum 

18 extent practicable, include short-term and long-term 

19 metrics to evaluate the implementation of each pol20 icy and initiative contained in each proposal devel21 oped under subsection (a)(2). 

22 (d) REPORTS.— 

23 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 18 

24 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

25 Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
14 

•S 1183 IS

1 of Congress a report that describes the actions that 

2 the Secretary has taken, and plans to take— 

3 (A) to engage with the Government of 

4 Haiti, nongovernmental stakeholders, and pub5 lic and private nonprofit organizations to imple6 ment this section; and 

7 (B) to enter into agreements with the Gov8 ernment of Haiti under subsection (a)(1). 

9 (2) BIENNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 2 

10 years after the date on which the Secretary first pro11 vides assistance to the Government of Haiti under 

12 subsection (a)(1) and biennially thereafter, the Sec13 retary shall submit to Congress a report that de14 scribes the progress of the Government of Haiti in 

15 implementing each policy and initiative contained in 

16 the proposal submitted under subsection (a)(2). 

17 (e) ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may 

18 provide financial and other assistance to nongovernmental 

19 stakeholders to ensure— 

20 (1) the access by local communities and indige21 nous people to information relating to each policy 

22 and initiative to be carried out by the Government 

23 of Haiti through funds made available under sub24 section (a)(1); and 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
15 

•S 1183 IS

1 (2) that the groups described in paragraph (1) 

2 have an appropriate opportunity to participate effec3 tively in the design, implementation, and inde4 pendent monitoring of each policy and initiative. 

5 (f) NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION.—At the 

6 election of the Government of Haiti, or on the determina7 tion of the Secretary, in cooperation with the Government 

8 of Haiti, the Government of Haiti may enter into an 

9 agreement with a private, nongovernmental conservation 

10 organization authorizing the organization to act on behalf 

11 of the Government of Haiti for the purposes of this sec12 tion. 

13 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec15 essary to carry out this section. 

16 TITLE II—GRANTS FOR 

17 REFORESTATION 

18 SEC. 201. REFORESTATION GRANT PROGRAM. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, in consulta20 tion with the Administrator, shall establish a grant pro21 gram to carry out the purposes of this Act, including re22 versing deforestation and improving reforestation and 

23 afforestation in Haiti. 

24 (b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
16 

•S 1183 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

2 to award grants and contracts to public and private 

3 nonprofit organizations to carry out projects that, in 

4 the aggregate, reverse deforestation and improve re5 forestation and afforestation. 

6 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

8 subparagraph (B), the Secretary may not 

9 award a grant under this section in an amount 

10 greater than $500,000 per year. 

11 (B) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may 

12 award a grant under this section in an amount 

13 greater than $500,000 per year if the Secretary 

14 determines that the recipient of the grant has 

15 demonstrated success with respect to a project 

16 that was the subject of a grant under this sec17 tion. 

18 (3) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award 

19 grants under this section for a period not to exceed 

20 3 years. 

21 (c) USE OF FUNDS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Grants awarded pursuant to 

23 subsection (b) may be used for activities such as— 

24 (A) providing a financial incentive to pro25 tect trees; 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
17 

•S 1183 IS

1 (B) providing hands-on management and 

2 oversight of replanting efforts; 

3 (C) focusing on sustainable income-gener4 ating growth; 

5 (D) providing seed money to start coopera6 tive reforestation and afforestation efforts and 

7 providing subsequent conditional funding for 

8 such efforts contingent upon required tree care 

9 and maintenance activities; 

10 (E) promoting widespread use of improved 

11 cooking stove technologies and the development 

12 of liquid biofuels, to the extent that neither re13 sults in the harvesting of tropical forest growth; 

14 and 

15 (F) securing the involvement and commit16 ment of local communities and indigenous peo17 ples— 

18 (i) to protect tropical forests in exist19 ence as of the date of enactment of this 

20 Act; and 

21 (ii) to carry out afforestation and re22 forestation activities. 

23 (2) CONSISTENCY WITH PROPOSALS.—To the 

24 maximum extent practicable, a project carried out 

25 using grant funds shall support and be consistent 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
18 

•S 1183 IS

1 with the proposal developed under section 101(a)(2) 

2 that is the subject of the project. 

3 (d) APPLICATION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for a grant 

5 under this section, an entity shall prepare and sub6 mit an application at such time, in such manner, 

7 and containing such information as the Secretary 

8 may reasonably require. 

9 (2) CONTENT.—Each application submitted 

10 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

11 (A) a description of the objectives to be at12 tained; 

13 (B) a description of the manner in which 

14 the grant funds will be used; 

15 (C) a plan for evaluating the success of the 

16 project based on verifiable evidence; and 

17 (D) to the extent that the applicant in18 tends to use nonnative species in afforestation 

19 efforts, an explanation of the benefit of the use 

20 of nonnative species over native species. 

21 (3) PREFERENCE FOR CERTAIN PROJECTS.—In 

22 awarding grants under this section, the Secretary 

23 shall give preference to applicants that propose— 

24 (A) to develop market-based solutions to 

25 the difficulty of reforestation in Haiti, including 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
19 

•S 1183 IS

1 the use of conditional cash transfers and similar 

2 financial incentives to protect reforestation ef3 forts; 

4 (B) to partner with local communities and 

5 cooperatives; and 

6 (C) to focus on efforts that build local ca7 pacity to sustain growth after the completion of 

8 the underlying grant project. 

9 (e) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.—The Sec10 retary shall collect and widely disseminate information 

11 about the effectiveness of the demonstration projects as12 sisted under this section. 

13 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec15 essary to carry out this section. 

16 SEC. 202. FOREST PROTECTION GRANTS. 

17 Chapter 7 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act 

18 of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2281 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

19 after section 466 the following new section: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 467. PILOT PROGRAM FOR HAITI. 

21 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF LIST OF AREAS OF SEVERELY

22 DEGRADED NATURAL RESOURCES.—The Administrator 

23 of the Agency for International Development, in coopera24 tion with nongovernmental conservation organizations, 

25 shall invite the Government of Haiti to submit a list of 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
20 

•S 1183 IS

1 areas within the territory of Haiti in which tropical forests 

2 are seriously degraded or threatened. 

3 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF LIST.—The Administrator shall as4 sess the list submitted by the Government of Haiti under 

5 subsection (a) and shall seek to reach agreement with the 

6 Government of Haiti for the restoration and future sus7 tainable use of those areas. 

8 ‘‘(c) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

9 ‘‘(1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Adminis10 trator of the Agency for International Development 

11 is authorized to make grants, in consultation with 

12 the International Forestry Division of the Depart13 ment of Agriculture and on such terms and condi14 tions as may be necessary, to nongovernmental orga15 nizations for the purchase on the open market of 

16 discounted commercial debt of the Government of 

17 Haiti in exchange for commitments by the Govern18 ment of Haiti to restore tropical forests identified by 

19 the Government under subsection (a) or for commit20 ments to develop plans for sustainable use of such 

21 tropical forests. 

22 ‘‘(2) MANAGEMENT OF PROTECTED AREAS.— 

23 Each recipient of a grant under this subsection shall 

24 participate in the ongoing management of the area 

25 or areas protected pursuant to such grant. 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS
21 

•S 1183 IS

1 ‘‘(3) RETENTION OF PROCEEDS.—Notwith2 standing any other provision of law, a grantee (or 

3 any subgrantee) of the grants referred to in section 

4 (a) may retain, without deposit in the Treasury of 

5 the United States and without further appropriation 

6 by Congress, interest earned on the proceeds of any 

7 resulting debt-for-nature exchange pending the dis8 bursements of such proceeds and interest for ap9 proved program purposes, which may include the es10 tablishment of an endowment, the income of which 

11 is used for such purposes. 

12 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

13 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec14 essary to carry out this section.’’. 

Æ 


wwoods2 on PROD1PC60 with BILLS