The governor said he met with Connaughton, the chairman of the White House Council for Environmental Quality, on Wednesday, and the submerged lands issue was discussed.
“We had a very productive session,” said the governor in a press briefing yesterday afternoon. “We ended up shaking hands.”
The CNMI government lost its quest to control its 200-mile EEZ or submerged lands in 2005 after the U.S. Supreme Court did not act on its appeal.
The federal court earlier ruled that the Northern Marianas surrendered its rights on its submerged lands when it became a commonwealth of the U.S.
“I asked Mr. Connaughton to help us lobby for the passage of legislation that would give us greater control over our submerged lands. I assured him, if the bill is passed, [we may have a different stand] on the marine monument proposal,” the governor said.
“He left with sweetness instead of sourness,” he added.
In the 109th U.S. Congress, a bill was introduced, S. 1831, offering the CNMI up to three miles of jurisdiction over its submerged lands.
The Fitial administration rejected the offer saying no economic benefit would be derived from an area that had only “corals, sand and gravel.”
All U.S. areas were granted a three-mile jurisdiction over their submerged lands, except for Puerto Rico, which negotiated for 12 miles even before it was ceded to America in 1898.
According to the governor, Australian and British foreign mining firms have expressed interest in exploring valuable minerals within the submerged lands of the CNMI beyond the three-mile zone.
Fitial said U.S. Congresswoman Donna Christensen, D-Virgin Islands, sponsored a common bill seeking to grant all territories up to 12-mile jurisdiction over their submerged lands.
