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U.S. Department of State Office of the Spokesman Press Statement Press Statement by James P. Rubin, Spokesman June 3, 1999 $4 Million Awarded for East Asia and Pacific Environmental Initiative The State Department has approved 21 activities totaling $4 million under the East Asia and Pacific Environmental Initiative Fund. The funds will be used to support regional efforts to improve forestry resource management and biodiversity conservation, marine resource and coastal zone management and biodiversity conservation, and to promote effective responses to climate change effects in the region. This effort is intended to enhance cooperation on environmental issues between the United States of America and the countries of Southeast Asia and the South Pacific, and is in addition to the $4.8 million used in FY 1998 to address the underlying causes of widespread forest fires in Southeast Asia in 1997-1998, which resulted in regional haze pollution and health problems. The new projects will specifically combat destructive fishing practices which use dynamite and cyanide to capture aquarium and food fish, study coral bleaching, protect endangered species, including sea turtles, enlarge marine and forest protected areas, and introduce modern forest harvesting practices to reduce wasteful techniques currently used. A number of projects will involve the cooperation of the ASEAN countries' private sector and catalyze additional funding from international organizations. Regional projects will benefit many ASEAN countries as well as Pacific Island states. The Department's Bureaus of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs in conjunction with the U. S. Agency for International Development will begin implementation in the near future. [end of document]