[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 61 (Thursday, March 30, 2023)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 19201-19204]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-06837]
[[Page 19199]]
Vol. 88
Thursday,
No. 61
March 30, 2023
Part II
The President
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Memorandum of March 24, 2023--Conserving the Natural and Cultural
Heritage of the Pacific Remote Islands
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 88 , No. 61 / Thursday, March 30, 2023 /
Presidential Documents
___________________________________________________________________
Title 3--
The President
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Memorandum of March 24, 2023
Conserving the Natural and Cultural Heritage of
the Pacific Remote Islands
Memorandum for the Secretary of the Interior [and] the
Secretary of Commerce
In the middle of the Pacific Ocean lie Howland, Baker,
Jarvis, and Wake Islands; Johnston and Palmyra Atolls;
and Kingman Reef, whose surrounding reefs, seamounts,
and ocean are filled with some of the most diverse and
remarkable marine life on the planet, including sharks,
rays, marlin, tuna, giant clams, hawksbill turtles,
ancient coral forests, and whales. Uninhabited today,
for centuries wayfinders of Pacific Island Indigenous
Peoples visited these islands while navigating through
the expanse of the vast Pacific Ocean.
For years, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Island
Indigenous communities, conservation advocates, and
scientists have advocated for the protection of United
States waters around these remote islands from
industrial fishing, oil drilling, and mining. Through
Proclamation 8336 of January 6, 2009 (Establishment of
the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument),
the President partially fulfilled these requests by
establishing the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National
Monument, which permanently protected the islands,
atolls, and emerged reef and 50 nautical miles of water
around each. Through Proclamation 9173 of September 25,
2014 (Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument
Expansion), the President took a further step to expand
the Monument to include 200 nautical miles--the full
extent of the United States Exclusive Economic Zone--
around Jarvis and Wake Islands and Johnston Atoll. In
addition, some areas within the Monument are designated
as National Wildlife Refuges.
The areas around Howland and Baker Islands, Palmyra
Atoll, and Kingman Reef that remain unprotected include
ecologically significant deep-water habitats and an
associated array of seamounts with exceptional value
for their biodiversity; spawning and feeding grounds
for skipjack, yellowfin, and bigeye tuna species; and
multiple apex predators that play a vital role in
maintaining ecological balance and resilience of the
ecosystem. Research continues to reveal the importance
of these relatively unexplored habitats to the health,
nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration of the
ocean.
To further ensure the protection of this unique and
fragile area, support more abundant fisheries in
surrounding areas, conserve the capacity of a healthy
ocean to capture and store greenhouse gases that would
otherwise enter the atmosphere, and appropriately honor
ancestral, historical, and cultural connections to this
and other Pacific conservation areas, and by the
authority vested in me as President by the Constitution
and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby
direct the following:
Section 1. Initiating National Marine Sanctuary
Designation. (a) Within 30 days of the date of this
memorandum, the Secretary of Commerce should consider
initiating designation of a National Marine Sanctuary
pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, 16
U.S.C. 1431 et seq., to provide the most comprehensive
and lasting protections to the significant natural and
cultural resources of the submerged lands and waters
surrounding the seven islands, atolls, and reefs of the
Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument--both
within and outside the Monument boundary, to the full
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extent of the seaward limit of the United States
Exclusive Economic Zone--including marine life, shoals,
seamounts, reefs, banks, and sediments high in minerals
and sequestered carbon dioxide for the benefit of
present and future generations.
(b) In any proposal of a National Marine Sanctuary
designation, as described in subsection (a) of this
section, the Secretary of Commerce shall identify the
anticipated timeline for the completion of the National
Marine Sanctuary designation process as expeditiously
as possible, consistent with applicable law.
(c) For any final designation, the Secretary of
Commerce shall establish a National Marine Sanctuary
advisory council and pursue, as appropriate,
opportunities to collaborate with Indigenous Peoples
with ancestral, historical, and cultural connections to
the area on planning and management.
Sec. 2. Collaboration on Conservation. The Secretary of
the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce
(Secretaries) shall collaborate, as appropriate,
regarding conservation of the lands and surrounding
waters of the Pacific Remote Islands.
Sec. 3. Collaborative Process on Naming. In recognition
of the deep and enduring cultural significance of this
region to the oceanic cultures of the Pacific, the
Secretaries shall develop and implement a process to
collaborate with Indigenous language experts, Native
Hawaiian Organizations, and other representatives from
Indigenous Peoples with ancestral, historical, and
cultural connections to the area to develop names and
naming conventions reflecting ancestral, historical,
and cultural connections for the National Wildlife
Refuges and any National Marine Sanctuary designated in
the area of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National
Monument and for the islands, atolls, reefs, and other
natural features in the area. Within 2 years of the
date of this memorandum and through the process they
develop, the Secretaries shall identify appropriate
names for the National Wildlife Refuges within the
Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument and any
National Marine Sanctuary that is designated in the
area, provide a recommendation to the President on the
potential renaming of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine
National Monument, and identify appropriate naming
conventions and processes for naming natural features
within the boundaries of the Monument and any National
Marine Sanctuary that is designated in the area.
Sec. 4. Recommendations on Appropriate Cultural
Recognition. Within 2 years of the date of this
memorandum, the Secretaries shall engage with Native
Hawaiian Organizations and relevant Pacific Island
Indigenous communities and coordinate with other
executive departments and agencies, as appropriate, to
provide the President with recommendations on honoring
the heritage, traditional practices, ancestral
pathways, and stopping points for Pacific Island
voyagers and on providing posthumous recognition for
the Hui Panal[amacr][revaps]au, who were Native
Hawaiians sent to the Pacific Remote Islands between
1935 and 1942, many of whom were young men from the
Kamehameha Schools.
Sec. 5. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this
memorandum shall be construed to impair or otherwise
affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or
the head thereof;
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals; or
(iii) the provisions of Proclamation 8336 and Proclamation 9173, including
those related to the rights, authorities, or exemptions for the Department
of Defense and actions of the Armed Forces.
(b) This memorandum shall be implemented consistent
with applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
(c) This memorandum is not intended to, and does
not, create any right or benefit, substantive or
procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by
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any party against the United States, its departments,
agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or
agents, or any other person.
(d) The Secretary of Commerce is hereby authorized
and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal
Register.
(Presidential Sig.)
THE WHITE HOUSE,
Washington, March 24, 2023
Billing code 3395-F3-P
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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TD30MR23.008
[FR Doc. 2023-06837
Filed 3-29-23; 11:15 a.m.]
Billing code 3510-07-C