The largest share of the funding support for the 12 agreements covered was related directly or indirectly to the objectives and concerns of the United Nations (U.N.) Framework Convention on Climate Change (the Framework Convention). This share accounted for approximately 71 percent of the total spending. The Framework Convention was followed by the Convention on Biological Diversity, which represented approximately 20 percent of the total spending, and by the International Tropical Timber Agreement, which represented approximately 5 percent of the total. The great majority of the five agencies’ spending in connection with these agreements was devoted to the agencies’ specific programs and projects, which accounted for about 98 percent of the spending. In the 3-year period covered by our review, EPA reported that it spent a total of $77.7 million in direct or indirect support of the objectives and concerns of the environmental agreements that were our focus. With respect to the general purposes for which EPA spent these funds, the largest single share, about 85 percent, went for specific projects and programs. This amount constituted approximately 23 percent of all nations’ support for UNEP’s environmental programs in this period. During 1992-95, the United States contributed a total of $7.09 million to the special purpose trust funds administered by UNEP. This amount was slightly more than 11 percent of all nations’ contributions to these trust funds. U.S. Financial Support for Multilateral Development Banks and Other International Financial Institutions

Financing of environmental projects, particularly in developing countries, is also made possible by loans, grants, and other assistance provided by multilateral development banks and affiliated international financial institutions supported by the United States and other governments. The World Bank received approximately 70 percent of this amount. The World Bank, in a recent “green accounting” of its lending portfolio in the 3 years following the Rio Earth Summit, reported that almost 10 percent—some $6.5 billion—of its cumulative portfolio was devoted to projects with environmental objectives. Framework Convention on Climate Change. Specifically, he asked us to identify the (1) funding of international environmental programs and activities by federal agencies and (2) federal financial support for the environmental programs and activities of specialized agencies of the United Nations and multilateral financial institutions such as the World Bank, regional development banks, and the Global Environment Facility. These agencies—the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Commerce—were selected on the basis of such considerations as the Committee’s interest and jurisdiction (the Department of State and USAID), the nature of the agencies’ roles, missions and activities, the magnitude and importance of their environmental programs, and our assessment of the agencies’ ability to respond in a timely manner to our requests for data. U.S. Government’s Contributions to UNEP’s Environment Fund and Estimated U.S. Financial Participation in UNEP’s Environmental Programs, 1992-1995

U.S. Government’s Contributions to UNEP-Administered Trust Funds

West and Central African Region $2,626,343 (25,000)

U.S. Financial Support for Multilateral Development Banks and Selected Other International Financial Institutions, Fiscal Years 1993-95

Totals, fiscal years 1993-95 For fiscal year 1993, the Congress appropriated $30 million for the Global Environment Facility.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed federal funding for international environmental activities, focusing on: (1) the level of funding related to 12 prominent international environmental agreements for fiscal years (FY) 1993 through 1995; (2) funding provided by the Departments of State and Commerce, the Department of Energy (DOE), the Agency for International Development (AID), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); and (3) federal financial support for the environmental programs and activities of the United Nations (UN), the World Bank, and other multilateral financial institutions.

What GAO Found

GAO found that; (1) in fiscal years (FY) 1993 through 1995, the Departments of State and Commerce, DOE, AID and EPA spent a combined total of $975.2 million in support of programs and activities related to the 12 international environmental agreements that were covered by GAO's review; (2) the greatest share of this spending, about 71 percent of the total, was related to the objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; (3) the next largest shares of the spending, about 20 percent and 5 percent, respectively, related to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the International Tropical Timber Agreement; (4) AID accounted for the largest single share, 61 percent of the total spending by the five federal agencies, followed by DOE, which contributed nearly 31 percent of the agencies' spending; (5) the spending by both agencies was primarily related to fulfilling the individual missions of those agencies, and was devoted principally to funding specific projects and programs; (6) in both cases, this spending related more closely to the objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change than to the other international environmental agreements covered by GAO's review; (7) the U.S. government's financial support for the international environmental programs and activities of nonfederal agencies consisted primarily of financial support for the UN Environment Program (UNEP) and for the activities of the World Bank and other multilateral financial institutions, including the Global Environment Facility; (8) from 1992 through 1995, the United States contributed a total of $74.61 million to UNEP's Environment Fund, which represented about 23 percent of all nations' contributions to the fund during that period; (9) from 1992 through 1995, the United States also contributed a total of $7.09 million to the special purpose trust funds administered by UNEP, which was approximately 11 percent of all nations' contributions to these funds in that period; (10) in FY 1993 through 1995, the United States provided a total of $4.73 billion to support the overall activities of multilateral development banks and other international financial institutions; (11) while it is not possible to determine precisely what percentage of this amount went for environmental projects, the World Bank, which received approximately 70 percent of this funding, recently reported that almost 10 percent of its investment portfolio was devoted to projects with primarily environmental objectives; and (12) another recipient of funds for environmental purposes was the Global Environment Facility, which in the same period received U.S. contributions totaling $120 million to provide developing countries with grants and loans, at favorable terms, for projects and activities designed to protect the global environment.