
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 16USC4401]

 
                         TITLE 16--CONSERVATION
 
            CHAPTER 64--NORTH AMERICAN WETLANDS CONSERVATION
 
Sec. 4401. Findings and statement of purpose


(a) Findings

    The Congress finds and declares that--
        (1) the maintenance of healthy populations of migratory birds in 
    North America is dependent on the protection, restoration, and 
    management of wetland ecosystems and other habitats in Canada, as 
    well as in the United States and Mexico;
        (2) wetland ecosystems provide essential and significant habitat 
    for fish, shellfish, and other wildlife of commercial, recreational, 
    scientific, and aesthetic values;
        (3) almost 35 per centum of all rare, threatened, and endangered 
    species of animals are dependent on wetland ecosystems;
        (4) wetland ecosystems provide substantial flood and storm 
    control values and can obviate the need for expensive manmade 
    control measures;
        (5) wetland ecosystems make a significant contribution to water 
    availability and quality, recharging ground water, filtering surface 
    runoff, and providing waste treatment;
        (6) wetland ecosystems provide aquatic areas important for 
    recreational and aesthetic purposes;
        (7) more than 50 per centum of the original wetlands in the 
    United States alone have been lost;
        (8) wetlands destruction, loss of nesting cover, and degradation 
    of migration and wintering habitat have contributed to long-term 
    downward trends in populations of migratory bird species such as 
    pintails, American bitterns, and black ducks;
        (9) the migratory bird treaty obligations of the United States 
    with Canada, Mexico, and other countries require protection of 
    wetlands that are used by migratory birds for breeding, wintering, 
    or migration and are needed to achieve and to maintain optimum 
    population levels, distributions, and patterns of migration;
        (10) the 1988 amendments to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation 
    Act of 1980 require the Secretary of the Interior to identify 
    conservation measures to assure that nongame migratory bird species 
    do not reach the point at which measures of the Endangered Species 
    Act [16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.] are necessary;
        (11) protection of migratory birds and their habitats requires 
    long-term planning and the close cooperation and coordination of 
    management activities by Canada, Mexico, and the United States 
    within the framework of the 1916 and 1936 Migratory Bird Conventions 
    and the Convention on Nature Protection and Wildlife Preservation in 
    the Western Hemisphere;
        (12) the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, signed in 
    1986 by the Minister of Environment for Canada and the Secretary of 
    the Interior for the United States, provides a framework for 
    maintaining and restoring an adequate habitat base to ensure 
    perpetuation of populations of North American waterfowl and other 
    migratory bird species;
        (13) a tripartite agreement signed in March 1988, by the 
    Director General for Ecological Conservation of Natural Resources of 
    Mexico, the Director of the Canadian Wildlife Service, and the 
    Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, provides 
    for expanded cooperative efforts in Mexico to conserve wetlands for 
    migratory birds that spend the winter there;
        (14) the long-term conservation of migratory birds and habitat 
    for these species will require the coordinated action of 
    governments, private organizations, landowners, and other citizens; 
    and
        (15) the treaty obligations of the United States under the 
    Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as 
    waterfowl habitat requires promotion of conservation and wise use of 
    wetlands.

(b) Purpose

    The purposes of this chapter are to encourage partnership among 
public agencies and other interests--
        (1) to protect, enhance, restore, and manage an appropriate 
    distribution and diversity of wetland ecosystems and other habitats 
    for migratory birds and other fish and wildlife in North America;
        (2) to maintain current or improved distributions of migratory 
    bird populations; and
        (3) to sustain an abundance of waterfowl and other migratory 
    birds consistent with the goals of the North American Waterfowl 
    Management Plan and the international obligations contained in the 
    migratory bird treaties and conventions and other agreements with 
    Canada, Mexico, and other countries.

(Pub. L. 101-233, Sec. 2, Dec. 13, 1989, 103 Stat. 1968.)

                       References in Text

    The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980, referred to in 
subsec. (a)(10), is Pub. L. 96-366, Sept. 29, 1980, 94 Stat. 1322, as 
amended, which is classified generally to chapter 49 (Sec. 2901 et seq.) 
of this title. In 1988, section 2912 of that chapter was enacted and 
section 2910 of that chapter was amended by Pub. L. 100-653, title VIII, 
Nov. 14, 1988, 102 Stat. 3833. For complete classification of this Act 
to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 2901 of this 
title and Tables.
    The Endangered Species Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(10), probably 
means the Endangered Species Act of 1973, Pub. L. 93-205, Dec. 28, 1973, 
87 Stat. 884, as amended, which is classified generally to chapter 35 
(Sec. 1531 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this 
Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1531 of this 
title and Tables.
    This chapter, referred to in subsec. (b), was in the original ``this 
Act'', meaning Pub. L. 101-233, Dec. 13, 1989, 103 Stat. 1968, as 
amended, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete 
classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out 
below and Tables.


                      Short Title of 1998 Amendment

    Pub. L. 105-312, title III, Sec. 301, Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 2958, 
provided that: ``This title [amending sections 3744 and 4406 of this 
title and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 4403 of 
this title] may be cited as the `Wetlands and Wildlife Enhancement Act 
of 1998'.''


                      Short Title of 1994 Amendment

    Pub. L. 103-375, Sec. 1, Oct. 19, 1994, 108 Stat. 3494, provided 
that: ``This Act [enacting section 4414 of this title and amending 
sections 3742 to 3744, 3955, 4406, 4407, 4409, and 4410 of this title] 
may be cited as the `North American Wetlands Conservation Act Amendments 
of 1994'.''


                               Short Title

    Section 1 of Pub. L. 101-233 provided that: ``This Act [enacting 
this chapter, amending sections 669b, 669c, 703, 715a, 2912, and 3931 of 
this title, enacting provisions set out as a note under section 669b of 
this title, and amending provisions set out as a note under section 
668dd of this title] may be cited as the `North American Wetlands 
Conservation Act'.''
