05/02/1997 03:52 PM Senate RES

          HJR 14 SUPPORT AMERICAN LAND SOVEREIGNTY ACT                        
                                                                              
  CHAIRMAN HALFORD  called the Senate Resources Committee meeting to           
 order at 3:52 p.m. and announced  HJR 14  to be up for consideration.         
                                                                               
  MS. MYRNA MCGHIE,  Staff to Representative Jeannette James, sponsor,         
 said that in 1971 the United States joined the U.N. program calling           
 for establishing biosphere reserves around the world.  Forty seven            
 national parks which cover 51 million acres of land are classified            
 as these sanctuaries.  Sixty eight percent of our national parks,             
 preserves, and monuments have been designated to the U.N.                     
 Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to                
 biosphere reserves and world heritage sites without any legislative           
 or congressional direction.  Most disturbing is that 40.7 million             
 acres of this land are in Alaska.  A world heritage site in Alaska            
 is Wrangell St. Elias National Park and Preserve and the six                  
 biosphere reserves are: Admiralty Island National Monument, the               
 Aleutian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, Denali National Park and           
 Preserve, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Glacier             
 Bay National Park and Preserve, and Noatak National Preserve.                 
                                                                               
 There is legitimate concern about possible international                      
 interference.                                                                 
  SENATOR TAYLOR  said that he is thoroughly convinced this is a               
 wonderful resolution and moved to pass it from committee with                 
 individual recommendations.  There were no objections and it was so           
 ordered.