109 HRES 856 IH: Recognizing the national marine sanctuaries U.S. House of Representatives 2006-06-08 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 856 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES June 8, 2006 Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mrs. Capps, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Case, Mr. Farr, Mr. Davis of Florida, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Gilchrest, Mr. George Miller of California, and Ms. Eshoo) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Resources RESOLUTION Recognizing the national marine sanctuaries program as critical to managing the ocean and Great Lake resources of the United States, and commending local and State partners and volunteers of the program for their contribution.

Whereas the oceans and Great Lakes are critical areas of life-sustaining resources that the Nation must resolve to protect for present and future generations; Whereas the national marine sanctuaries program is a vital thread in the larger fabric of ocean science, conservation, and education, and influences how the people of the United States understand and care for the oceans; Whereas the program, consisting of more than 400 partnerships, exemplifies cooperation between a Federal agency and State and local partners, and these partnerships harness the experience of scientists and other experts to further the research, monitoring, education, outreach, and enforcement goals of the program; Whereas the 13 designated national marine sanctuaries provide manageable and accessible areas in which partnerships, research centers, and educators can focus their efforts, and serve as living laboratories, classrooms, and recreation areas for the people of the United States; Whereas a process is underway to designate the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve as the 14th national marine sanctuary; Whereas the program depends on thousands of volunteers who contribute tens of thousands of hours, valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars, to the program; Whereas in 2005, approximately 3,400 volunteers donated more than 114,000 hours to the program; Whereas the program provides millions of school children and adults with key information and was cited in the United States Commission on Ocean Policy report dated September 20, 2004, as one of the leading forces in providing the Nation with ocean education; and Whereas the program is an investment in the future of the oceans and protects one of the largest segments of the United States economy, as well as the economies and travel and tourism industries of coastal areas: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)recognizes the national marine sanctuary program as critical to the management of the ocean and Great Lake resources of the United States; (2)recognizes the program as a leading force in promoting ocean education and literacy; (3)commends the State and local partners and volunteers of the program for critical management of national marine sanctuaries and devotion to the conservation of these sanctuaries; and (4)acknowledges that investing in these sanctuaries will provide economic and other benefits to present and future generations.