President Carter's message to Congress of May 23, 1977, outlined his Administration's environmental policy with regard to a broad spectrum of issues of a national and international nature. The following text is taken from Section VI of the message, entitled "The Global Environment":

Environmental problems do not stop at national boundaries. In the past decade we and other nations have come to recognize the urgency of international efforts to protect our common environment.

As part of this process, I am directing the Council on Environmental Quality and the Department of State, working in cooperation with the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other appropriate agencies, to make a one-year study of the probable changes in the world's population, natural resources, and environment through the end of the century. This study will serve as the foundation of our longer-term planning. I am also asking the Council on Environmental Quality, with the cooperation of the Department of State, to ensure that we achieve the best possible coordination of the international environmental programs within the executive branch.

WORLD POPULATION

Rapid population growth is a major environmental problem of world dimensions. World population increased from three to four billion in the last 15 years, substantially canceling out expansion in world food production and economic growth of the same period.

Without controlling the growth of population, the prospects for enough food, shelter, and other basic needs for all the world's people are dim. Where existence is already poor and precarious, efforts to obtain the necessities of life often degrade the environment for generations to come.

It is, of course, up to each nation to determine its own policies, but we are prepared to respond promptly and fully to all requests for assistance in population and health care programs. At my direction, the Department of State and the Agency for International Development stand ready to cooperate through international organizations, through private voluntary organizations or through direct contacts with other governments.

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ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS IN ECONOMIC

DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE

Whether to try to prevent or undo environmental damage is a decision each country must make for itself. But I am convinced that in the long run, development programs that are environmentally sound will yield the most economic benefits. To encourage the adoption of such programs, I have taken these steps:

(1) I have instructed the Secretary of State, the Administrator of AID, and other concerned Federal agencies to ensure full consideration of the environmental soundness of development projects under review for possible assistance.

(2) I have asked the Administrator of AID to make available to developing countries assistance in environment and natural resources management. Such assistance could help developing countries design environmentally sound projects, regardless of the source of funding for a particular project.

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL AGREEMENTS

A number of Federal agencies, under the guidance of the Council on Environmental Quality, are engaged in international conservation activity. I am directing my Administration to expand this effort, giving particular attention to the following areas:

(1) The Endangered Species Convention [entered into force for the United States July 1, 1975; TIAS 8249] is now in effect. The next step is to implement the treaty effectively. The United States has begun efforts to prohibit trade in endangered species of plants and animals, and will encourage similar steps by other nations.

(2) Pursuant to the Antarctic Treaty [entered into force for the United States June 23, 1961; 12 UST 794; TIAS 4780; 402 UNTS 71], I am today submitting legislation to Congress to provide for special protection of the flora and fauna of Antarctica. Because this remote, unpopulated region greatly influences the stability of the entire Earth's oceans and atmosphere, its unique environment must be preserved.

(3) The Convention for Nature Protection and Wildlife Preservation in the Western Hemisphere [entered into force for the United States Apr. 30, 1942; 56 Stat. 1354; TS 981; 3 Bevans 630; 161 UNTS 193] was signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940, but has yet to be carried out fully and systematically. I propose to the countries of the Americas that we now implement this Convention through the offices of the Organization of American States. I urge the development of a Pan-American Migratory Species Treaty, and the convening of an Inter-American Conference on the Management of Western Hemisphere Renewable Natural Resources. The United States has already offered to host the Conference.

(4) I soon will send to the Senate for ratification the Treaty for the Conservation of Migratory Birds and Their Environment [signed Nov. 19, 1976], which we signed with the Soviet Union last November. This treaty-and the legislation I will submit to im

plement it will establish new authority to conserve the habitat necessary to the survival of these birds.

SAVING THE WHALES

Sharing the worldwide public concern about the condition of marine mammals, especially whales, I have directed the Secretary of Commerce, with the foreign policy guidance of the Secretary of State to:

• Prohibit commercial whaling within our 200-mile fishery zone; Pursue negotiations within the International Whaling Commission for a stronger international conservation regime for whales and other cetaceans, affording protection for them throughout their range;

• Maintain firm U.S. support for a ten-year worldwide moratorium on the commercial killing of whales; and

• Report to me within 60 days any actions by other countries that have diminished the effectiveness of the International Whaling Commission's conservation program.

13 Weekly Comp. of Pres. Doc. 792–793 (May 30, 1977).

Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977

The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977, Public Law 95-95, 91 Stat. 685 (codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.), approved on August 7, 1977, amends section 115 of the Clean Air Act to provide a section entitled "International Air Pollution." This section requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to give formal notification under certain conditions to the Governor of any State in the United States where air pollutants are causing or contributing to pollution endangering public health or welfare in a foreign country.

(a) Whenever the Administrator, upon receipt of reports, surveys or studies from any duly constituted international agency has reason to believe that any air pollutant or pollutants emitted in the United States cause or contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare in a foreign country or whenever the Secretary of State requests him to do so with respect to such pollution which the Secretary of State alleges is of such a nature, the Administrator shall give formal notification thereof to the Governor of the State in which such emissions originate.

(b) The notice of the Administrator shall be deemed to be a finding under section 110 (a) (2) (H) (ii) which requires a plan revision with respect to so much of the applicable implementation plan as is inadequate to prevent or eliminate the endangerment referred to in subsection (a). Any foreign country so affected by such emission of pollutant or pollutants shall be invited to appear at any public hearing associated with any revision of the appropriate portion of the applicable implementation plan.

(c) This section shall apply only to a foreign country which the Administrator determines has given the United States essentially the same rights with respect to the prevention or control of air pollution occurring in that country as is given that country by this section.

(d) Recommendations issued following any abatement conference conducted prior to the enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977 shall remain in effect with respect to any pollutant for which no national ambient air quality standard has been established under section 109 of this Act unless the Administrator, after consultation with all agencies which were party to the conference, rescinds any such recommendation on grounds of obsolescence.

Exotic Organisms

On May 24, 1977, President Carter signed Executive Order 11987, which requires U.S. executive agencies to restrict the introduction of exotic species into the natural ecosystems on the lands and waters under their administration. The Order also requires executive agencies to restrict to the extent permitted by law the use of Federal resources in support of efforts to export native species into ecosystems outside the United States where they do not naturally occur. Exceptions to the Order may be made by the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, who together with the heads of other appropriate agencies are charged with the administration of the Order.

13 Weekly Comp. of Pres. Doc. 803 (May 30, 1977). The text of E.O. 11987 follows:

By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the United States of America, and as President of the United States of America, in furtherance of the purposes and policies of the Lacey Act (18 U.S.C. 42) [1900] and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. As used in this Order:

(a) "United States" means all of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, Guam. and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

(b) "Introduction" means the release, escape, or establishment of an exotic species into a natural ecosystem.

(c) "Exotic species" means all species of plants and animals not naturally occurring, either presently or historically, in any ecosystem of the United States.

(d) "Native species" means all species of plants and animals naturally occurring, either presently or historically, in any ecosystem of the United States.

SEC. 2. (a) Executive agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, restrict the introduction of exotic species into the natural ecosystems on lands and waters which they own, lease, or hold for purposes of administration; and, shall encourage the States, local governments, and private citizens to prevent the introduction of exotic species into natural ecosystems of the United States.

(b) Executive agencies, to the extent they have been authorized by statute to restrict the importation of exotic species, shall restrict the introduction of exotic species into any natural ecosystem of the United States.

(c) Executive agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, restrict the use of Federal funds, programs, or authorities used to export native species for the

purpose of introducing such species into ecosystems outside the United States where they do not naturally occur.

(d) This Order does not apply to the introduction of any exotic species, or the export of any native species, if the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior finds that such introduction or exportation will not have an adverse effect on natural ecosystems.

SEC. 3. The Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture and the heads of other appropriate agencies, shall develop and implement, by rule or regulation, a system to standardize and simplify the requirements, procedures and other activities appropriate for implementing the provisions of this Order. The Secretary of the Interior shall ensure that such rules or regulations are in accord with the performance by other agencies of those functions vested by law, including this Order, in such agencies.

Desertification

On August 30, 1977, James A. Joseph, Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior and Chairman of the U.S. Delegation to the U.N. Conference on Desertification, presented the principal U.S. statement to the Conference, which was convened in Nairobi, Kenya, from August 29 until September 9, 1977. His statement to the delegates from 95 countries and numerous intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations characterized desertification as a problem common to all of the human community and outlined the U.S. experience in attempting to cope with desert encroachment and deterioration of semiarid lands. He described as well some U.S. initiatives to combat the problem in the Sahel and other regions of the world. Portions of his address appear below:

In addition to participating in numerous "special" efforts, such as the Sahel program, over recent decades the United States has continually provided educational and training opportunities for scientists and students from abroad in our laboratories and universities. Working unilaterally, bilaterally, and through the multilateral organizations, we have attempted to help address problems of the developing world through cooperative research, demonstration, and capital and technical assistance. Many other countries have done likewise. However, as this conference demonstrates by its mere existence, "we" in the United States, "we," the world community of nations, have not dealt adequately with the problem.

Speaking for my government, the United States is prepared to do more. I know that other countries will join with us after this conference in an intensified, coordinated attack on one of the most crucial global problems which we, our children, and future generations must confront. Let me illustrate the intent and thrust of the U.S. commitment in this regard with several examples.

The U.S. Congress is just now putting final touches on a foreign assistance bill which will provide a new and specific mandate for the