S-734                 _______________________________________________

                                          SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL NO. 8008

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1989 Regular Session

By Senators Sutherland, Metcalf, Owen and DeJarnatt; by request of Joint Select Committee on Marine and Ocean Resources

Read first time 1/27/89 and referred to Committee on Environment & Natural Resources.

TO THE HONORABLE GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, THE UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR:

          We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:

          WHEREAS, The seabed off Washington's coast contains an extraordinary amount of gravel, and may contain other valuable minerals; and

          WHEREAS, Most of this gravel is located beyond the state's seaward boundary on the federal outer continental shelf; and

          WHEREAS, Geologists have projected that this gravel will likely be economical to produce in the decades ahead; and

          WHEREAS, Other minerals, including titanium rich sands, have been located in state waters and may extend into federal waters; and

          WHEREAS, The future production of these mineral resources from the federal outer continental shelf may require that local communities, counties, and the state expend large sums of money to pay for increases in social service demands, capital construction projects, environmental reviews, and project monitoring; and

          WHEREAS, Since the extraction vessels are operating in federal waters, traditional sources of local and state revenues, such as ad valorem taxes, will not be available to defray social service costs; and

          WHEREAS, The federal government has a long history of sharing revenues from timber production on national forest land, onshore mineral production, and grazing fees; and

          WHEREAS, Congress has recently developed a program to share with adjacent states revenues from oil and gas development occurring on the outer continental shelf; and

          WHEREAS, The extraction of these mineral resources could result in impacts to coastal fishing, water quality, and coastal erosion if measures are not taken to ensure that these resources and processes are protected; and

          WHEREAS, One way to help ensure that measures to minimize impacts are adopted is to frequently consult with local and state governmental officials; and

          WHEREAS, In recognition of the need for consultation, Congress explicitly requires that the Secretary of Interior consult with the governor of affected states prior to federal oil and gas lease sales on the outer continental shelf and requires that oil and gas exploration and development plans be consistent with approved state coastal management plans; and

          WHEREAS, No consultation or coastal consistency provisions have been provided for nonoil and gas minerals;

          NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the Congress of the United States amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require the Secretary of Interior to closely consult with the governors of states affected by offshore gravel and mineral production prior to the mineral disposal, and throughout the exploration and production process.

          BE IT RESOLVED, That the Congress of the United States amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require that the federal government equitably share with adjacent states revenues derived from gravel and hard rock mineral production on the federal outer continental shelf and that exploration and development plans be required to be consistent with approved state coastal management plans;

          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable George Bush, President of the United States, the United States Secretary of the Interior, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.