H. R. 4320
One Hundred Sixth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Monday,
the twenty-fourth day of January, two thousand
An Act
To assist in the conservation of great apes by supporting and providing financial
resources for the conservation programs of countries within the range of great
apes and projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation
of great apes.
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 ‘‘Great Ape Conservation Act
of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) great ape populations have declined to the point that
the long-term survival of the species in the wild is in serious
jeopardy;
(2) the chimpanzee, gorilla, bonobo, orangutan, and gibbon
are listed as endangered species under section 4 of the Endan-
gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533) and under Appendix
I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (27 UST 1087; TIAS 8249);
(3) because the challenges facing the conservation of great
apes are so immense, the resources available to date have
not been sufficient to cope with the continued loss of habitat
due to human encroachment and logging and the consequent
diminution of great ape populations;
(4) because great apes are flagship species for the conserva-
tion of the tropical forest habitats in which they are found,
conservation of great apes provides benefits to numerous other
species of wildlife, including many other endangered species;
(5) among the threats to great apes, in addition to habitat
loss, are population fragmentation, hunting for the bushmeat
trade, live capture, and exposure to emerging or introduced
diseases;
(6) great apes are important components of the ecosystems
they inhabit, and studies of their wild populations have pro-
vided important biological insights;
(7) although subsistence hunting of tropical forest animals
has occurred for hundreds of years at a sustainable level,
the tremendous increase in the commercial trade of tropical
forest species is detrimental to the future of these species;
and
(8) the reduction, removal, or other effective addressing
of the threats to the long-term viability of populations of great
H. R. 4320—2
apes in the wild will require the joint commitment and effort
of countries that have within their boundaries any part of
the range of great apes, the United States and other countries,
and the private sector.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to sustain viable populations of great apes in the wild;
and
(2) to assist in the conservation and protection of great
apes by supporting conservation programs of countries in which
populations of great apes are located and by supporting the
CITES Secretariat.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) CITES.—The term ‘‘CITES’’ means the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora, done at Washington March 3, 1973 (27 UST 1087; TIAS
8249), including its appendices.
(2) CONSERVATION.—The term ‘‘conservation’’—
(A) means the use of methods and procedures necessary
to prevent the diminution of, and to sustain viable popu-
lations of, a species; and
(B) includes all activities associated with wildlife
management, such as—
(i) conservation, protection, restoration, acquisi-
tion, and management of habitat;
(ii) in-situ research and monitoring of populations
and habitats;
(iii) assistance in the development, implementa-
tion, and improvement of management plans for man-
aged habitat ranges;
(iv) enforcement and implementation of CITES;
(v) enforcement and implementation of domestic
laws relating to resource management;
(vi) development and operation of sanctuaries for
members of a species rescued from the illegal trade
in live animals;
(vii) training of local law enforcement officials in
the interdiction and prevention of the illegal killing
of great apes;
(viii) programs for the rehabilitation of members
of a species in the wild and release of the members
into the wild in ways which do not threaten existing
wildlife populations by causing displacement or the
introduction of disease;
(ix) conflict resolution initiatives;
(x) community outreach and education; and
(xi) strengthening the capacity of local commu-
nities to implement conservation programs.
(3) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Great Ape Con-
servation Fund established by section 5.
(4) GREAT APE.—The term ‘‘great ape’’ means a chimpanzee,
gorilla, bonobo, orangutan, or gibbon.
(5) MULTINATIONAL
SPECIES
CONSERVATION
FUND.—The
term ‘‘Multinational Species Conservation Fund’’ means such
fund as established in title I of the Department of the Interior
H. R. 4320—3
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999, under the
heading ‘‘MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION FUND’’.
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary
of the Interior.
SEC. 4. GREAT APE CONSERVATION ASSISTANCE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of funds and in
consultation with other appropriate Federal officials, the Secretary
shall use amounts in the Fund to provide financial assistance
for projects for the conservation of great apes for which project
proposals are approved by the Secretary in accordance with this
section.
(b) PROJECT PROPOSALS.—
(1) ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.—A proposal for a project for the
conservation of great apes may be submitted to the Secretary
by—
(A) any wildlife management authority of a country
that has within its boundaries any part of the range of
a great ape if the activities of the authority directly or
indirectly affect a great ape population;
(B) the CITES Secretariat; or
(C) any person or group with the demonstrated exper-
tise required for the conservation of great apes.
(2) 
REQUIRED
ELEMENTS.—A 
project 
proposal 
shall
include—
(A) a concise statement of the purposes of the project;
(B) the name of the individual responsible for con-
ducting the project;
(C) a description of the qualifications of the individuals
who will conduct the project;
(D) a concise description of—
(i) methods for project implementation and out-
come assessment;
(ii) staff and community management for the
project; and
(iii) the logistics of the project;
(E) an estimate of the funds and time required to
complete the project;
(F) evidence of support for the project by appropriate
governmental entities of the countries in which the project
will be conducted, if the Secretary determines that such
support is required for the success of the project;
(G) information regarding the source and amount of
matching funding available for the project; and
(H) any other information that the Secretary considers
to be necessary for evaluating the eligibility of the project
for funding under this Act.
(c) PROJECT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall—
(A) not later than 30 days after receiving a project
proposal, provide a copy of the proposal to other appropriate
Federal officials; and
(B) review each project proposal in a timely manner
to determine if the proposal meets the criteria specified
in subsection (d).
(2) CONSULTATION; APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.—Not later
than 180 days after receiving a project proposal, and subject