[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4686 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4686

  To authorize the Secretary of Interior to study the suitability and 
feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, and limestone forest 
sites on Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, as a unit 
                      of the National Park System.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 24, 2010

  Mr. Sablan introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To authorize the Secretary of Interior to study the suitability and 
feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, and limestone forest 
sites on Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, as a unit 
                      of the National Park System.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Rota Cultural and 
Natural Resources Study Act''.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds as follows:
            (1) The island of Rota was the only major island in the 
        Mariana Islands to be spared the destruction and large scale 
        land use changes brought about by World War II.
            (2) The island of Rota has been described by professional 
        archeologists as having the most numerous, most intact, and 
        generally the most unique prehistoric sites of any of the 
        islands of the Mariana Archipelago.
            (3) The island of Rota contains remaining examples of what 
        is known as the Latte Phase of the cultural tradition of the 
        indigenous Chamorro people of the Mariana Islands. Latte stone 
        houses are remnants of the ancient Chamorro culture.
            (4) Four prehistoric sites are listed on the National 
        Register of Historic Places: Monchon Archeological District 
        (also known locally as Monchon Latte Stone Village), Taga Latte 
        Stone Quarry, the Dugi Archeological Site that contains, latte 
        stone structures, and the Chugai Pictograph Cave that contains 
        examples of ancient Chamorro rock art. Alaguan Bay Ancient 
        Village is another latte stone prehistoric site that is 
        surrounded by tall-canopy limestone forest.
            (5) In addition to prehistoric sites, the island of Rota 
        boasts historic sites remaining from the Japanese period (1914-
        1945). Several of these sites are on the National Register of 
        Historic Places: Nanyo Kohatsu Kabushiki Kaisha Sugar Mill, 
        Japanese Coastal Defense Gun, and the Japanese Hospital.
            (6) The island of Rota's natural resources are significant 
        because of the extent and intact condition of its native 
        limestone forest that provides habitat for several federally 
        endangered listed species, the Mariana crow, and the Rota 
        bridled white-eye birds, that are also native to the island of 
        Rota. Three endangered plant species are also found on Rota and 
        two are endemic to the island.
            (7) Because of the significant cultural and natural 
        resources listed above, on September 2005, the National Park 
        Service, Pacific West Region, completed a preliminary resource 
        assessment on the island of Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern 
        Mariana Islands, which determined that the ``establishment of a 
        unit of the national park system appear[ed] to be the best way 
        to ensure the long term protection of Rota's most important 
        cultural resources and its best examples of its native 
        limestone forest.''.

SEC. 2. NPS STUDY OF SITES ON THE ISLAND OF ROTA, COMMONWEALTH OF THE 
              NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS.

    (a) Study.--The Secretary of the Interior shall--
            (1) carry out a study regarding the suitability and 
        feasibility of designating prehistoric, historic, and limestone 
        forest sites on the island of Rota, Commonwealth of the 
        Northern Mariana Islands, as a unit of the National Park 
        System; and
            (2) consider management alternatives for the island of 
        Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
    (b) Study Process and Completion.--Except as provided by subsection 
(c) of this section, 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.
    (c) Submission of Study Results.--Not later than 18 months after 
the date that funds are made available for this section, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
the Senate a report describing the results of the study.
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