Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 104 Part 4.djvu/661

 PUBLIC LAW 101-594—NOV. 16, 1990 104 STAT. 2977 (8) The term "Under Secretary" means the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF ANTARCTIC MINERAL RESOURCE ACTIVITIES. 16 USC 2463. Pending a new agreement among the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties in force for the United States, to which the Senate has given advice and consent or which is authorized by further legislation by the Congress, which provides an indefinite ban on Antarctic mineral resource activities, it is unlawful for any person to engage in, finance, or otherwise knowingly provide Eissistance to any Antarctic mineral resource activity. SEC. 5. INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENT. 16 USC 2464. (a) It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should enter into negotiations with the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties to conclude one or more new international agreements to— (1) conserve and protect permanently the natural environment of Antarctica and its associated and dependent ecosystems; (2) prohibit or ban indefinitely Antarctic mineral resource activities by all parties to the Antarctic Treaty; (3) grant Antarctica special protective status as a land of science dedicated to wilderness protection, international cooperation, and scientific research; (4) ensure that the results of all scientific investigations relating to geological processes and structures be made openly available to the international scientific community, as required by the Antarctic Treaty; and (5) include other comprehensive measures for the protection of the Antarctic environment. (b) It is the sense of Congress that any treaty or other international agreement submitted by the President to the Senate for its advice and consent to ratification relating to mineral resources or activities in Antarctica should be consistent with the purpose and provisions of this Act. SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT. 16 USC 2465. (a) IN GENERAL.— A violation of this Act or any regulation promulgated under this Act is deemed to be a violation of the Antarctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act (16 U.S.C. 2431-2444) and shall be enforced under that Act by the Under Secretary or another Federal official to whom the Under Secretary has delegated this responsibility. (b) PENALTY. — If the Under Secretary determines that a person has violated section 4— (1) that person shall be ineligible to locate a mining claim under the mining laws of the United States; and (2) the Secretary of the Interior shall refuse to issue a patent under the mining laws of the United States, or a lease under the laws of the United States related to mineral or geothermal leasing, to any such person who attempts to perfect such patent or lease application after the Under Secretary has made such determination.

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