In response to the House of Representatives' passage of the America COMPETES Act,World Wildlife Fund (WWF) released the following statement from Alejandro Pérez, senior vice president of policy and government affairs:
"As part of the America COMPETES Act, the House has passed a number of key legislative initiatives to protect the global environment, recognizing the critical role that nature and the ecological integrity of our planet play in our future security, stability, and prosperity.
"Provisions in the bill renew programs to protect tropical forests and coral reefs and prevent wildlife trafficking. They advance new measures to curb illegal fishing, halt deforestation, and stop the spillover of zoonotic diseases like COVID-19. And they direct the U.S. to take stronger steps to confront the grave and growing threat posed by climate change, including authorizing major new investments in the Green Climate Fund.
"Taken collectively, these elements of the bill are an impressive move by Congress to tackle some of our most urgent global challenges. They also send a strong signal to other countries that international cooperation is paramount to making headway on these problems, and that the United States intends to help lead the way.
"As the House and Senate work towards agreement on a final version of the bill, we urge Congress to ensure these environmental provisions remain in the legislation that is ultimately sent to the President's desk."
