George Miller: “I support H.R. 39 which continues funding for the African Elephant Conservation Act through the year 2002. Enacted in…”

“I support H.R. 39 which continues funding for the African Elephant Conservation Act through the year 2002. Enacted in October 1988 in response to the alarming decline of African elephants, the act has made a significant contribution to the preservation of this threatened species. This legislation will allow these efforts to continue. The African Elephant Conservation Act has funded effective programs throughout 17 different African countries. Efficiently using small, strategically important grants, the act: enhances elephant conservation management programs; supports antipoaching training and operations; and develops sound scientific data on elephant populations. The act promotes range-wide efforts, as well as cooperative projects that provide for matching funds from a variety of other sources. All of these programs work toward the act's purpose of perpetuating healthy populations of African elephants. Despite the achievements seen so far, I am concerned about the coordination and management of U.S. funded elephant conservation efforts.”