§ 6301. — Findings and purposes.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 16USC6301]
TITLE 16--CONSERVATION
CHAPTER 82--GREAT APE CONSERVATION
Sec. 6301. 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 1533 of this title 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 conservation
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 provided
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 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 chapter 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.
(Pub. L. 106-411, Sec. 2, Nov. 1, 2000, 114 Stat. 1789.)
Short Title
Pub. L. 106-411, Sec. 1, Nov. 1, 2000, 114 Stat. 1789, provided
that: ``This Act [enacting this chapter] may be cited as the `Great Ape
Conservation Act of 2000'.''
