DIVISION of Fish and Wildlife Director Manny Pangelinan testified in the House of Representatives Tuesday in support of House Joint Resolution 22-2, which opposes the proposal of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration-National Marine Fisheries Service to designate certain areas as critical habitat for threatened corals in U.S. waters.
Among these areas are the near-shore waters surrounding Rota, Aguijan, Tinian and Tatsumi Reef, Saipan and Garapan Bank, Farallon de Medinilla, Anatahan, Pagan and Maug.
The National Marine Fisheries Service or NMFS stated in the Federal Register that comments regarding the proposal must be received by Jan. 26, 2021.
In response, Department of Lands and Natural Resources Secretary Anthony Benavente asked the NOAA to conduct public hearings on Tinian, Saipan, and Rota; extend the comment period for another 60 days; and provide detailed critical habitat boundaries on nautical charts with maps available for public review a minimum of 30 days before the end of the comment period.
Gov. Ralph DLG Torres, Guam Gov. Lourdes A. Deleon Guerrero and American Samoa Gov. Lemanu P.S. Mauga also asked the federal agency for 90 days to comment on the proposed designation of critical habitat.
Authored by Vice Speaker Blas Jonathan Attao, H.J.R. 22-2 expresses full support for the DLNR secretary’s requests, to wit:
(1) To postpone the current proposed coral critical habitat designation process due to the “complete disregard of local agency coordination” by NMFS. Moreover, “critical habitat maps presented in the proposed rule are not based on best scientific information available as the coral five-year status review has not been completed”;
(2) To allow the Department of Lands and Natural Resources to develop the CNMI’s coral critical habitat map based on local current data in lieu of the deficient NMFS critical habitat maps included in the proposed rule; and
(3) To reconsider the prudence of designating coral critical habitat in the CNMI as the process is redundant with existing regulatory programs. There are sufficient existing local and federal regulatory programs in place to protect our imperiled coral species and coral reef habitat.
Pangelinan, in his testimony, told House members that the NMFS “did a poor job” in putting together a proposal to designate critical habitat.
The map for the critical habitat, he added, was done in an “overzealous manner, which does not consider to exclude areas such sea grass, managed areas” surrounding the CNMI.
He believes that the process should be approached with best management practice.
Pangelinan also said that there are already many laws and regulations in the book that provide for the protection and conservation of coral and its habitat.
“To act in such a haste without giving everyone the opportunity to review the five-year status and contemplate what would be the appropriate approach would be counterproductive,” he added.
John Gourley of Micronesian Environmental Services — no relation to the Marpi Landfill contractor MES LLC — also expressed support for the joint resolution.
The proposed rules, he said, were decided without coordinating with any of the affected islands.
The designation of critical habitat, he said, “was very general, broad and sweeping and there seems to be a lot of federal overreach, and not a lot of science in defining critical habitat.”
Speaker Edmund Villagomez, center, back row, Vice Speaker Blas Jonathan Attao, right, and House Floor Leader Ralph N. Yumul attend a House session on Tuesday. Also in photo are House clerk Linda Muna and House legal counsel Joe Taijeron.
Photo by Emmanuel T. Erediano
