(1) Place a high priority on conservation and sustainable
management of tropical forests.
(2) To the fullest extent feasible, engage in dialogues and
exchanges of information with recipient countries--
(A) which stress the importance of conserving and sustainably
managing forest resources for the long-term economic benefit
of those countries, as well as the irreversible losses associated
with forest destruction, and
(B) which identify and focus on policies of those countries
which directly or indirectly contribute to deforestation.
(3) To the fullest extent feasible, support projects and
activities--
(A) which offer employment and income alternatives to those
who otherwise would cause destruction and loss of forests,
and
(B) which help developing countries identify and implement
alternatives to colonizing forested areas.
(4) To the fullest extent feasible, support training programs,
educational efforts, and the establishment or strengthening
of institutions which increase the capacity of developing
countries to formulate forest policies, engage in relevant
land-use planning, and otherwise improve the management of
their forests.
(5) To the fullest extent feasible, help end destructive
slash-and-burn agriculture by supporting stable and productive
farming practices in areas already cleared or degraded and
on lands which inevitably will be settled, with special emphasis
on demonstrating the feasibility of agroforestry and other
techniques which use technologies and methods suited to the
local environment and traditional agricultural techniques
and feature close consultation with and involvement of local
people.
(6) To the fullest extent feasible, help conserve forests
which have not yet been degraded, by helping to increase production
on lands already cleared or degraded through support of reforestation,
fuelwood, and other sustainable forestry projects and practices,
making sure that local people are involved at all stages of
project design and implementation.
(7) To the fullest extent feasible, support projects and
other activities to conserve forested watersheds and rehabilitate
those which have been deforested, making sure that local people
are involved at all stages of project design and implementation.
(8) To the fullest extent feasible, support training, research,
and other actions which lead to sustainable and more environmentally
sound practices for timber harvesting, removal, and processing,
including reforestation, soil conservation, and other activities
to rehabilitate degraded forest lands.
(9) To the fullest extent feasible, support research to expand
knowledge of tropical forests and identify alternatives which
will prevent forest destruction, loss, or degradation, including
research in agroforestry, sustainable management of natural
forests, small-scale farms and gardens, small-scale animal
husbandry, wider application of adopted traditional practices,
and suitable crops and crop combinations.
(10) To the fullest extent feasible, conserve biological
diversity in forest areas by--
(A) supporting and cooperating with United States Government
agencies, other donors (both bilateral and multilateral),
and other appropriate governmental, intergovernmental, and
nongovernmental organizations in efforts to identify, establish,
and maintain a representative network of protected tropical
forest ecosystems on a worldwide basis;
(B) whenever appropriate, making the establishment of protected
areas a condition of support for activities involving forest
clearance of degradation; and
(C) helping developing countries identify tropical forest
ecosystems and species in need of protection and establish
and maintain appropriate protected areas.
(11) To the fullest extent feasible, engage in efforts to
increase the awareness of United States Government agencies
and other donors, both bilateral and multilateral, of the
immediate and long-term value of tropical forests.
(12) To the fullest extent feasible, utilize the resources
and abilities of all relevant United States Government agencies.
(13) Require that any program or project under this chapter
significantly affecting tropical forests (including projects
involving the planting of exotic plant species)--
(A) be based upon careful analysis of the alternatives available
to achieve the best sustainable use of the land, and
(B) take full account of the environmental impacts of the
proposed activities on biological diversity, as provided for
in the environmental procedures of the Agency for International
Development.
(14) Deny assistance under this chapter for--
(A) the procurement or use of logging equipment, unless an
environmental assessment indicates that all timber harvesting
operations involved will be conducted in an environmentally
sound manner which minimizes forest destruction and that the
proposed activity will produce positive economic benefits
and sustainable forest management systems; and
(B) actions which significantly degrade national parks or
similar protected areas which contain tropical forests or
introduce exotic plants or animals into such areas.
(15) Deny assistance under this chapter for the following
activities unless an environmental assessment indicates that
the proposed activity will contribute significantly and directly
to improving the livelihood of the rural poor and will be
conducted in an environmentally sound manner which supports
sustainable development:
(A) Activities which would result in the conversion of forest
lands to the rearing of livestock.
(B) The construction, upgrading, or maintenance of roads
(including temporary haul roads for logging or other extractive
industries) which pass through relatively undegraded forest
lands.
(C) The colonization of forest lands.
(D) The construction of dams or other water control structures
which flood relatively undegraded forest lands.