SAIPAN — Independent delegate candidate Galvin Sablan Deleon Guerrero said Tuesday he is dismayed by the federal government’s move toward commercial seabed mineral leasing off the CNMI, saying the decision ignores tens of thousands of public comments in opposition and undermines the Commonwealth’s ability to determine what happens in its own waters.
The statement came the same day the Marine Minerals Administration’s Proposed Leasing Notice for a potential critical minerals lease sale off the CNMI published in the Federal Register. Deleon Guerrero said the decision ignores 60,000 public comments that voiced opposition to the proposal, including concerns raised by Gov. David M. Apatang and Guam Gov. Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero.
Deleon Guerrero said that when federal regulators invited public comment, he submitted questions and concerns focused on impacts to the environment, culture and economy. He said he urged the agency to require comprehensive baseline environmental studies developed with peer-reviewed rigor and a precautionary approach before any leasing decisions, and to ensure consistent, meaningful and ongoing consultation with cultural practitioners, man’amko, traditional navigators and community leaders.
On the economy, Deleon Guerrero said there is currently no example anywhere in the world where deep-sea mineral extraction has succeeded commercially without significant uncertainty or environmental concern, and that given the CNMI’s limited capacity to absorb long-term environmental or economic liabilities, risks to tourism and fisheries must be fully assessed and transparently mitigated.
He said those concerns, along with those of tens of thousands of commenters, appear to have been dismissed, which he called a steady undermining of the CNMI’s right to participate as a meaningful steward of its surrounding waters. He said that right was also recently undermined by the announcement opening the CNMI’s waters to U.S. commercial fishing without meaningful consultation.
Deleon Guerrero also took aim at the incumbent he is challenging, saying the current delegate has conceded revenue-sharing models that he said basically surrender the ocean’s resources to federal authorities. Congresswoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds has proposed a 50-50 federal-local split of any seabed mining revenues.
He said he agrees instead with Rep. Marissa R. Flores, who announced Tuesday she will introduce a resolution calling on Congress to guarantee the CNMI shares in the ownership, management and long-term benefits of its offshore resources.
“We are descendants of seafarers that navigated the Western Pacific to settle on these islands,” Deleon Guerrero said. “For centuries, our peoples have sailed these waters, fished them, and taken care of them. It is our livelihood. It is our heritage. As such, decisions made thousands of miles away that affect our ocean must include us in a meaningful way.”
The federal agency said Monday that publication of the Proposed Leasing Notice does not affirm a sale will be held, and that a Final Leasing Notice would publish at least 30 days before any sale date.
Deleon Guerrero Says Seabed Leasing Move Ignores Public Opposition, Hits King-Hinds on Revenue Stance
SAIPAN — Independent delegate candidate Galvin Sablan Deleon Guerrero said Tuesday he is dismayed by the federal government’s move toward commercial seabed mineral leasing off the CNMI, saying the decision ignores tens of thousands of public comments in opposition and undermines the Commonwealth’s ability to determine what happens in its own waters.
The statement came the same day the Marine Minerals Administration’s Proposed Leasing Notice for a potential critical minerals lease sale off the CNMI published in the Federal Register. Deleon Guerrero said the decision ignores 60,000 public comments that voiced opposition to the proposal, including concerns raised by Gov. David M. Apatang and Guam Gov. Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero.
Deleon Guerrero said that when federal regulators invited public comment, he submitted questions and concerns focused on impacts to the environment, culture and economy. He said he urged the agency to require comprehensive baseline environmental studies developed with peer-reviewed rigor and a precautionary approach before any leasing decisions, and to ensure consistent, meaningful and ongoing consultation with cultural practitioners, man’amko, traditional navigators and community leaders.
On the economy, Deleon Guerrero said there is currently no example anywhere in the world where deep-sea mineral extraction has succeeded commercially without significant uncertainty or environmental concern, and that given the CNMI’s limited capacity to absorb long-term environmental or economic liabilities, risks to tourism and fisheries must be fully assessed and transparently mitigated.
He said those concerns, along with those of tens of thousands of commenters, appear to have been dismissed, which he called a steady undermining of the CNMI’s right to participate as a meaningful steward of its surrounding waters. He said that right was also recently undermined by the announcement opening the CNMI’s waters to U.S. commercial fishing without meaningful consultation.
Deleon Guerrero also took aim at the incumbent he is challenging, saying the current delegate has conceded revenue-sharing models that he said basically surrender the ocean’s resources to federal authorities. Congresswoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds has proposed a 50-50 federal-local split of any seabed mining revenues.
He said he agrees instead with Rep. Marissa R. Flores, who announced Tuesday she will introduce a resolution calling on Congress to guarantee the CNMI shares in the ownership, management and long-term benefits of its offshore resources.
“We are descendants of seafarers that navigated the Western Pacific to settle on these islands,” Deleon Guerrero said. “For centuries, our peoples have sailed these waters, fished them, and taken care of them. It is our livelihood. It is our heritage. As such, decisions made thousands of miles away that affect our ocean must include us in a meaningful way.”
The federal agency said Monday that publication of the Proposed Leasing Notice does not affirm a sale will be held, and that a Final Leasing Notice would publish at least 30 days before any sale date.