$500,000 for Marianas Trench Marine National Monument Visitor’s Center

Taken from NMI Congressman Kilili's weekly newsletter:

Appropriators approve $500,000 for Marianas Trench Marine National Monument Visitor’s Center -The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment & Related Agencies unveiled its fiscal 2011 spending bill yesterday. Included in the markup bill was my request for funds toward the construction of a Marianas Trench Marine National Monument Visitor’s Center in the Northern Mariana Islands. The $500,000 earmark will be added to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service construction budget and may be used for site planning, architectural engineering, and the design of the Monument Visitor Center. I am very grateful to Chairman Jim Moran and the members of the Subcommittee for their help in fulfilling the commitment the White House made in establishing the Monument—that it would benefit the people of the Northern Mariana Islands. I also very much appreciate the support of Congresswoman Bordallo, who asked the Subcommittee for Monument funding for the Marianas. We can be sure that expanding public awareness and knowledge of the Monument's geologic and marine wonders will be beneficial to the entire Marianas region. As with the other $1.475 million in earmarks I requested, which have already been approved in committee, the latest $500,000 is just the beginning of the formal legislative process. Having these requests included in the bill is a major step, but not a guarantee of final approval. [emphasis added]

Guam researchers warn against threat of spear-fishing

Good article in the Marianas Variety this morning on scuba-spearfishing. Nice work Janela Buhain!

"Data which has tracked fishing patterns on Guam since 1985 attributes 85 percent of the recorded atuhong and tanguisson catch to fishermen using scuba."

To read the article, click here: Guam researchers warn against threat of spear-fishing

Deep-sea Mining update

The Chinese are set to begin a deep-sea mining project in the Indian Ocean.

From the Independent

The Chinese government has just lodged the first application to mine for minerals under the seabed in international waters, in this case on a ridge in the Indian Ocean 1,700 metres (more than 5,000ft) below the surface.

The feasibility and cost involved in deep sea mining is one concern, the environmental concerns, especially considering the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster, is another.