[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 37 (Monday, February 27, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H880-H881]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AND THE VIRGIN ISLANDS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
the Virgin Islands (Ms. Plaskett) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. PLASKETT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the role of 
the National Park Service in the Virgin Islands of the United States. 
While the National Park Service plays a vital role in preserving the 
natural and cultural resources and facilitating outdoor recreation 
throughout the Nation, I must acknowledge that the relationship between 
the people of the Virgin Islands and the National Park Service has not 
always been and is not the best.
  On St. Croix, the park sits on some of our most sacred ground, and it 
is incumbent on them to appreciate and preserve that, of course, which 
is important, but also to make it accessible to those of us who are 
living there. On St. John especially, St. Johnians are concerned and 
have a history in which Laurance Rockefeller was able to take so much 
land. There are questions even today about who owned what land, how was 
it taken, and how did it become part of the National Park Service.
  I have continually expressed concern about the National Park 
Service's hiring and staffing practices in the Virgin Islands. I have 
encouraged the recruitment of native Virgin Islanders who understand 
the historical context of park spaces and possess a greater degree of 
cultural awareness. While there have been some hires, I have yet to see 
meaningful progress, and extended vacancies of National Park Service 
positions are a concern.
  Additionally, for the past 3 years, I have suggested the formation of 
just a community garden within the Virgin Islands National Park Service 
boundaries. Such action is authorized by the National Park Service 
management plan of 2006.
  In fact, the Virgin Islands National Park Service general management 
plan of 1983 included the development of an approximately 2-acre garden 
plot.
  The park comprises 7,259 acres, and to not have a plot for the people 
who live on that island to be able to garden, people who are locked 
around water, who have an inability to be able to get fresh fruit and 
vegetables to their families, it would also foster a better 
relationship between the community and the national park.
  Last week, my office hosted a meeting to ensure that Virgin 
Islanders' voices--not just written comments--were received by the 
Department of the Interior, the National Park Service, and the 
Government of the Virgin Islands about the proposed Government of the 
Virgin Islands National Park Service St. John land exchange for the 
construction of a K-12 school on St. John. During this meeting, my 
office learned of the barriers and difficulties to submit a written 
statement during the final comment period.
  Thankfully, the park allowed us to extend this until March 15.
  While my office can advocate for the people of the Virgin Islands--
presently my office and Congress is not a party to the agreement--the 
land exchange between the Governor of the Virgin Islands and the 
National Park Service seems to be going through.
  While I may not always agree with our Governor, in this instance I 
recognize that he is between a rock and a hard place presently as 
Virgin Islanders are quickly approaching their deadline for using 
Federal funding to rebuild the school. As we all know, the National 
Park Service process takes time.
  Indeed, Senator Angus King, who last Congress headed up the Natural 
Resources Committee in the Senate, was only able to get the National 
Park Service to donate land in Maine after 30 years of advocacy.
  The children of the Virgin Islands do not have that time.

                              {time}  1215

  Additionally, we are approaching the end of the Caneel Bay 
Redevelopment and Management Environmental Assessment public comment 
period. The National Park Service owns 70 percent of the island of St. 
John, making it one of the most pristine islands not only in the Virgin 
Islands but in the Caribbean.
  The path forward for a resort at Caneel Bay must consider the 
socioeconomic and environmental impact on the Virgin Islands. Caneel 
Bay contains some of the best beaches in the world, and to not utilize 
the property as a world-class, five-star resort would put the Virgin 
Islands at a disadvantage for tourism dollars.
  The path forward for Caneel Bay impacts not just St. John but the 
entire territory. If Caneel Bay is relegated to

[[Page H881]]

a third-rate facility, it will have a cataclysmic impact on the Virgin 
Islands economy. From reluctance to place plaques at sacred places to 
rangers stopping people in public parades, among other things, the 
National Park Service has to do better in terms of how it deals with 
native Virgin Islanders.

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