[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 140 (Thursday, October 9, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S10797]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. JEFFORDS:
  S. 1287. A bill to assist in the conservation of Asian elephants by 
supporting and providing financial resources for the conservation 
programs of nations within the range of Asian elephants and projects of 
persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of Asian 
elephants; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


              The Asian Elephant Conservation Act of 1997

  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, today I rise today to introduce a bill 
to assist in the preservation of Asian elephants. The bill, the ``Asian 
Elephant Conservation Act of 1997'', is modeled after the highly 
successful African Elephant Conservation Act of 1988 and the Rhinoceros 
and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994. It will authorize up to $5 million 
per year to be appropriated to the Department of the Interior to fund 
various projects to aid in the preservation of the Asian elephant.
  Since the challenges of the Asian elephants are so great, resources 
to date have not been sufficient to cope with the continued loss of 
habitat and the consequent diminution of Asian elephant populations
  Among the threats to the Asian elephant in addition to habitat loss 
are population fragmentation, human-elephant conflict, poaching for 
ivory, meat, hide, bones and teeth, and capture for domestication. To 
reduce, remove, or otherwise effectively address these threats to the 
long-term viability of populations of Asian elephants in the wild will 
require the joint commitment and effort of nations within the range of 
Asian elephants, the United States and other countries, and the private 
sector.
  On April 22, 1997, I introduced the African Elephant Conservation 
Reauthorization Act of 1997 (S. 627). By the late 1980's, the 
population of African elephants had dramatically declined from 
approximately 1.3 million animals in 1979 to less than 700,000 in 1987. 
The primary reason for this decline was the poaching and illegal 
slaughter of elephants for their tusks, which fueled the international 
trade policy. Today, as a result of the bill, the African elephant 
population has stabilized, international ivory prices remain low, and 
wildlife rangers are better equipped to stop illegal poaching 
activities.
  I am a strong proponent of the protection and conservation of 
endangered species. If we do not act now, the world's future 
generations may not be able to enjoy many of the species of wildlife 
now in existence. This small, but critical investment of U.S. taxpayer 
money will be matched by private funds and will significantly improve 
the likelihood that wild Asian elephants will exist in the 21st 
Century. It is my hope that the Asian Elephant Conservation Act of 1997 
will hopefully see the same successes that the African elephant bill 
has seen.
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