[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 74 (Wednesday, June 10, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6115-S6116]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       ACKNOWLEDGING 1998 AS THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF THE OCEAN

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 405, House Concurrent 
Resolution 131.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 131) acknowledging 
     1998 as the International Year of the Ocean and expressing 
     the sense of the Congress regarding the ocean.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the concurrent resolution?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution, which had been reported from the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation with an amendment.

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
committee substitute be agreed to, the resolution be agreed to, the 
amendment to the preamble be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the 
motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements 
relating to the resolution appear in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 131), as amended, was agreed 
to.
  The preamble, as amended, was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 131), as amended, together 
with its preamble, as amended, is as follows:

      /    Resolved, That the resolution from the House of 
     Representatives (H. Con. Res. 131) entitled ``Concurrent 
     resolution acknowledging 1998 as the International Year of 
     the Ocean and expressing the sense of the Congress regarding 
     the ocean.'', do pass with the following amendments:
       Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert:
     That it is the sense of the Congress that--
       (1) the ocean is of paramount importance to the economic 
     future, environmental quality, and national security of the 
     United States;
       (2) the United States has a responsibility to exercise and 
     promote comprehensive stewardship of the ocean and the living 
     marine resources it contains; and
       (3) Federal agencies are encouraged to take advantage of 
     the International Year of the Ocean in 1998, to--
       (A) review United States oceanography and marine resource 
     management policies and programs;
       (B) identify opportunities to streamline, better direct, 
     and increase interagency cooperation in oceanographic 
     research and marine resource management policies and 
     programs;
       (C) identify opportunities to further cooperation between 
     the United States and other nations to enhance oceanographic 
     research and exploration, and to strengthen international 
     marine resource conservation policies and programs;
       (D) in cooperation with academic institutions, 
     nongovernmental organizations, and industry, develop 
     scientific, educational, and resource management programs 
     which will advance the exploration of the ocean, the 
     conservation of marine habitats and species, and the 
     sustainable use of ocean resources; and
       (E) encourage participation in State, local, and private 
     initiatives and programs that use education and the arts to 
     increase public awareness of the ocean and the many benefits 
     that it provides, and to foster understanding of the need to 
     conserve and sustainably manage ocean resources.

       Strike out the preamble and insert:

       Whereas the ocean, which comprises nearly three quarters of 
     the Earth's surface, sustains a large part of the Earth's 
     biodiversity, provides an important source of food, and 
     interacts with and affects global weather and climate;
       Whereas the ocean is critical to national security, is the 
     common means of transportation

[[Page S6116]]

     among coastal nations, and carries 95 percent of the United 
     States foreign trade;
       Whereas the ocean and sea floor contain vast energy and 
     mineral resources that are critical to the economy of the 
     United States and the world;
       Whereas ocean resources are limited and susceptible to 
     change as a direct and indirect result of human activities, 
     and such changes can impact the ability of the ocean to 
     provide the benefits upon which the Nation depends;
       Whereas the vast majority of the deep ocean is unexplored 
     and unknown, and the ocean is truly the last frontier on 
     Earth for science and civilization;
       Whereas there exists significant promise for the 
     development of new ocean technologies for stewardship of 
     ocean resources that will contribute to the economy through 
     business and manufacturing innovations and the creation of 
     new jobs;
       Whereas any nation's use or misuse of ocean resources has 
     effects far beyond that nation's borders;
       Whereas it has been 30 years since the Commission on Marine 
     Science, Engineering, and Resources (popularly known as the 
     Stratton Commission) met to examine the state of United 
     States ocean policy and issued recommendations that led to 
     the present Federal structure for oceanography and marine 
     resources management;
       Whereas recent public opinion polls indicate that a large 
     majority of Americans consider the condition of the oceans to 
     be important, and that a large majority rate the overall 
     health of the oceans negatively; and
       Whereas the United Nations has declared 1998 to be the 
     International Year of the Ocean, and in order to observe this 
     occasion, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
     and other Federal agencies, in cooperation with organizations 
     concerned with ocean science and marine resources, have 
     resolved to promote exploration, utilization, conservation, 
     and public awareness of the ocean: Now, therefore, be it

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