IV 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 68 

Expressing support for the goals and ideals of National Marine Awareness 

Day. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 13, 2013 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 

the Committee on Natural Resources 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the goals and ideals of National 

Marine Awareness Day. 

Whereas the ocean covers 71 percent of the Earth’s surface 

and contains 97 percent of the planet’s water; 

Whereas the marine environment supports the life of nearly 

50 percent of all species on Earth and helps sustain that 

life by providing 20 percent of the animal protein and 

five percent of the total protein in the human diet; 

Whereas coastal habitats account for approximately 1⁄3 of all 

marine biological productivity, estuarine ecosystems are 

among the most productive regions on the planet, and 

coral reefs shelter the highest levels of marine diversity 

in the world; 


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•HRES 68 IH 

Whereas coral reef ecosystems are a source of food for millions of people; protect coastlines from storms and erosion; provide habitat and spawning and nursery grounds 

for economically important fish species; provide jobs and 

income to local economies from fishing, recreation, and 

tourism; are a source of new medicines; and are hotspots 

of marine biodiversity; 

Whereas it is difficult to put a dollar value on some of the 

benefits the world’s marine ecosystems provide, but a recent estimate states that the total net benefit of coral 

reef ecosystems alone to be $30,000,000,000 per year; 

Whereas one of every six jobs in the United States is marinerelated and over one-third of the United States gross national product originates in coastal areas; 

Whereas 80 percent of the United States Virgin Islands’ 

gross domestic product and employment are based on 

marine-related tourism; 

Whereas the economy and cultural heritage of American 

Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico, and coastal states across the 

continental United States are significantly reliant on the 

tremendous ecosystem services that the ocean provides; 

Whereas human-dominated marine ecosystems are experiencing accelerating loss of populations and species with 

largely unknown consequences, overall rates of resource 

collapse have increased, and recovery potential, stability, 

and water quality have decreased exponentially with declining diversity; 

Whereas the ocean has absorbed a significant portion of all 

carbon dioxide emissions, causing unprecedented changes 


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•HRES 68 IH 

to ocean chemistry affecting marine organisms that use 

carbonate to build shells or skeletons; 

Whereas large quantities of human-generated trash enters 

the marine environment as marine debris and causes a 

decrease in water quality, death and morbidity for marine 

mammals, depletion of valuable fisheries, and decreased 

tourism revenue; 

Whereas human-induced pressures such as pollution, degradation of water quality, harmful fishing practices, and 

a changing climate are adversely affecting our precious 

marine resources; 

Whereas coral reefs, seabirds, marine mammals, fisheries, 

and tourism will be severely impacted by the Deepwater 

Horizon oil spill; 

Whereas marine biodiversity loss is increasingly impairing the 

ocean’s capacity to function effectively as a system, or to 

provide food, maintain water quality, and recover from 

perturbations, yet available data suggest that at this 

point these trends are still reversible and the restoration 

of marine ecosystem biodiversity has shown to increase 

system productivity by fourfold; 

Whereas the United States has had a longstanding commitment to the preservation and conservation of the marine 

environment, as demonstrated through the passage and 

implementation of numerous laws including the Marine 

Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et 

seq.), the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 

U.S.C. 1451 et seq.), the Endangered Species Act of 

1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 


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•HRES 68 IH 

1801 et seq.), the Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000 

(16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.), and other statutes; and 

Whereas the eighth day of June of each year is the appropriate day for designation as National Marine Awareness 

Day: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) celebrates the diversity of marine fisheries 

3 and wildlife and the natural beauty and biological 

4 richness that marine ecosystems provide; 

5 (2) supports the goals and ideals of National 

6 Marine Awareness Day; and 

7 (3) calls upon the people of the United States 

8 to observe such a day with appropriate ceremonies, 

9 programs, and activities. 

Æ 


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