I
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 follow-
ing 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 Representa-
tives 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 dis-
appearing, scientists estimate conservatively that 5
to 10 percent of tropical forest species could dis-
appear 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 institu-
tions interested in the potential applications of bio-
logical 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 en-
hancing its economic value, can effectively serve the
interests of both conservation and economic growth.
(6) Maintaining access to a continuing and reli-
able 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 Develop-
ment, there is international recognition of the impor-
tant 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 re-
sources for United States companies, research insti-
tutes, botanical laboratories, universities, and other
institutions interested in the potential uses and ben-
efits of such resources, by—
(A) assisting the countries of Latin Amer-
ica and the Caribbean to establish and
strengthen biodiversity management organiza-
tions;
(B) creating incentives for resource-shar-
ing entities to enter into resource exchange
agreements with biodiversity management orga-
nizations;
(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 distribu-
tion 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 co-
operation on environmental problems.
SEC. 4. WESTERN HEMISPHERE BIODIVERSITY COOPERA-
TION PROGRAM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the
Agency for International Development shall establish with-
in the Agency a Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Co-
operation 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 estab-
lish biodiversity management organizations and strength-
en 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 Carib-
bean, 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 agree-
ments with resource-sharing entities through train-
ing in areas such as research, contract law and ne-
gotiation, quality control, and management;
(4) advising the governments in countries in
which biodiversity management organizations oper-
ate on legislation and policies that will conserve bio-
logical diversity and encourage sustainable economic
development;
(5) facilitating cooperation and exchange of in-
formation among such organizations;
(6) developing and studying the uses of biologi-
cal samples from tropical forests and other areas
rich in biodiversity that may provide sustainable eco-
nomic opportunities for communities located in or
near such forests and areas; and
(7) facilitating cooperation and close consulta-
tion with indigenous peoples in the geographic areas
in which biodiversity management organizations
operate.
(c) DEBT EXCHANGES.—Assistance under this sec-
tion 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 Assist-
ance 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 con-
sult with and use the expertise of appropriate United
States Government agencies and nongovernmental con-
servation organizations in the United States, Latin Amer-
ica, and the Caribbean.
(e) COLLABORATION
WITH
NATIONAL
GOVERN-
MENTS.—The Administrator shall, in carrying out the pro-
gram described in subsection (a), encourage and seek to
facilitate close collaboration between biodiversity manage-
ment organizations and the governments of the countries
in which the organizations operate.
SEC. 5. WESTERN HEMISPHERE BIODIVERSITY COOPERA-
TION GRANTS.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In furtherance of section 2(4)
and section 3(1)(B) and (C), the Administrator shall es-
tablish, as part of the program under section 4, a program
of Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Cooperation Grants.
(b) PURPOSE.—Grants under the program estab-
lished under subsection (a) may be awarded to biodiversity
management organizations to encourage the conclusion of
resource exchange agreements, between such organiza-
tions 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 man-
agement 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 agree-
ment if, in the judgment of the Administrator, such a
grant would significantly increase the likelihood that an
agreement would be concluded or would significantly in-
crease 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 Adminis-
trator 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 re-
source-sharing entity under the agreement will be
provided by the organization to the government of
the country or countries in which the resources re-
ferred to in the agreement originate, for use in the
conservation of tropical forests and other areas im-
portant for biodiversity conservation;
(2) that the entity will—
(A) give or lend equipment to the organiza-
tion 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 intellec-
tual 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 agree-
ment; 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 consid-
ered assistance for purposes of any provision of law limit-
ing assistance to any country.
SEC. 6. WESTERN HEMISPHERE ENVIRONMENTAL PART-
NERSHIP.
(a) STUDY.—The President shall direct an appro-
priate Federal entity to study the feasibility of establishing
a Western Hemisphere Environmental Partnership to pro-
mote hemispheric technological cooperation on environ-
mental problems, the purpose of which would be—
(1) to promote public-private sector partner-
ships to address environmental problems and to in-
crease 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 envi-
ronmental problems;
(3) to provide for the training in sound environ-
mental practices of appropriate personnel from gov-
ernment, industry, and nongovernmental organiza-
tions in Latin America and the Caribbean by person-
nel with appropriate expertise from similar organiza-
tions in the United States;
(4) to develop innovative mechanisms for fi-
nancing improvements in the environmental protec-
tion 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 envi-
ronmental 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 Develop-
ment 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 Hemi-
sphere Biodiversity Cooperation Program under sec-
tion 4 and the Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Co-
operation Grants under section 5; and
(2) the results of the study of a Western Hemi-
sphere Environmental Partnership under section 6,
together with the President’s recommendations for
action by the Congress.
(b) SUBSEQUENT ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each year fol-
lowing the report referred to in subsection (a), the Presi-
dent 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 Ad-
ministrator of the Agency for International Develop-
ment;
(2) the term ‘‘biodiversity management organi-
zation’’ means a nonprofit local or regional organiza-
tion in Latin America or the Caribbean whose pur-