[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 318 Referred in Senate (RFS)]


109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 318


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 16, 2005

   Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and 
 feasibility of designating Castle Nugent Farms located on St. Croix, 
 Virgin Islands, as a unit of the National Park System, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE STUDY REGARDING CASTLE NUGENT FARMS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Castle Nugent Farms, located on the southeastern shore 
        of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, is the largest parcel of 
        privately-held land in the Virgin Islands and has been an 
        operating cattle ranch for 50 years.
            (2) This land has the largest and healthiest fringing coral 
        reef anywhere in the Virgin Islands.
            (3) It consists of Caribbean dry forest and pasturelands 
        with considerable cultural resources including both pre-
        Columbian and post-European settlement.
            (4) Castle Nugent Farms contains a large historic 17th 
        century Danish estate house that sits on over 4 miles of 
        pristine Caribbean oceanfront property.
            (5) In addition to being an area for turtle nesting and 
        night heron nesting, it is the home for the Senepol cattle 
        breed, a unique breed of cattle that was developed on St. Croix 
        in the early 1900's to adapt to the island's climate.
    (b) Study.--The Secretary of the Interior shall carry out a study 
regarding the suitability and feasibility of designating Castle Nugent 
Farms as a unit of the National Park System.
    (c) Study Process and Completion.--Section 8(c) of Public Law 91-
383 (16 U.S.C. 1a-5(c)) shall apply to the conduct and completion of 
the study required by this section.

            Passed the House of Representatives November 15, 2005.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.