[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 17742-17743]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       INTRODUCING THE WILDLIFE WITHOUT BORDERS AUTHORIZATION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. DON YOUNG

                               of alaska

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 14, 2009

  Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to reintroduce today 
the Wildlife Without Borders Authorization Act
  The Wildlife Without Borders Program was administratively created by 
the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1983. For the past 25 years, the 
International Affairs Office has done a superb job of developing 
wildlife management and conservation efforts to maintain global species 
diversity.
  While the Congress has already created Multinational Species 
Conservation Funds to assist highly imperiled African and Asian 
elephants, Rhinoceros and Tigers, Great Apes and Marine Turtles, the 
Wildlife Without Borders program has provided a funding lifeline to a 
number of endangered species that for whatever reason have not merited 
their own Multinational Species Conservation Fund.
  The first conservation grants issued under this program were awarded 
to the Wildlife Without Borders Program for Latin America and the 
Caribbean Initiative. Since that time, additional grants have been 
allocated for projects in Africa, Mexico, India, China and the Russian 
Federation. In fact, in the past two decades, the International Affairs 
Office within the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has approved 955 
conservation projects at a cost of $20.5 million in taxpayer money. 
These funds have been matched by more than $60 million in private non-
federal money, which is a remarkable 3 to 1 matching ratio.
  Among the conservation projects that have been approved are funds for 
the Winged Ambassadors Program to stop the killing of Swainson's hawks 
in Argentina, a project to conserve the forest habitat for monarch 
butterflies, jaguar conservation in the Yucatan region, the restoration 
of the California condor in Baja California, Mexico and the purchase of 
equipment for law enforcement personnel to protect imperiled Far 
Eastern leopards, Amur tigers and snow leopards.
  A fundamental goal of this program has been to build conservation 
capacity and establish ecosystem management regimes by allocating a 
small amount of U.S. taxpayer money. It is no exaggeration to state 
that these are the only funds available to assist these highly 
endangered international species and without this investment these 
species may become extinct in the wild.
  During the last Congress, witnesses representing the U. S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the 
Wildlife Conservation Society, and the World Wildlife Fund testified 
before the House Natural Resources Committee on H.R. 4455. Each of 
these organizations spoke in strong support of my bill to establish the 
Wildlife Without Borders Program into law. For instance, the 
Association of Zoos and Aquariums said that: ``AZA wholeheartedly 
supports this effort''. The Wildlife Conservation Society stated that: 
``Congressional authorization for the Wildlife Without Borders program 
affirms the leadership of the U.S. Government within the international 
community, underscoring our commitment to our international wildlife 
treaty obligations, and encouraging coordinated international efforts 
to save wildlife species.'' Finally, the World Wildlife Fund testified 
that: ``There is much to be gained in authorizing the international 
conservation programs of FWS, and creating one umbrella to promote 
synergies, efficiencies and coordination.''
  By establishing a Congressional authorization for the Wildlife 
Without Borders Program, we will send a positive message to the 
international community that the United States is committed to its 
international wildlife treaty obligations and we recognize the long-
term importance of this program by enacting it into law. It will also 
ensure that this Congress has an opportunity to carefully examine this 
program, to evaluate its effectiveness and to decide whether its merits 
further expenditures of taxpayer money in the future.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important conservation 
legislation.

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