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People ofEnewetak v. Laird
(Remarks of Senator Jackson). Hence section
4332(2)(E) directs federal agencies to support,
“where consistent with the foreign policy of
the United States, ... initiatives, resolutions,
and programs designed to maximize international cooperation in anticipating and preventing a decline in the quality of mankind's

world environment . ..."’ Cooperation is pos-

sible, according to Senator Jackson, ‘‘because
the problems of the environment do not. for

the most part, raise questions related to ideol-

tartan,

ogy, national security and the balance of worid
power.” 115 Cong. Rec. at 40417 (1969). In
view of this expressed concern with the global
ramifications of federal actions, it is reasonable to conclude that the Congress intended
NEPAto applyin all areas underits exclusive

ad atten

control. In areas like the Trust Territory there

ee Ne

is little, if any, need for concern about conflicts
with United States foreign policy or the balance of world power.

Although this court has been unable to discover any decisional law that is directly pertinent, there is a recent decision that appears

to have accorded NEPA an even wider scope
spsieh paendinddi Xd

than that advocated byplaintiffs in this case.

In Wilderness Society v. Morton, 4 E.R.
1101 (D.C. Cir. decided May 11, 1972), the

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District of Columbia Court of Appeals allowed a Canadian environmental organization
to intervene in litigation aimed at testing
whetherthe Secretaryof the Interior had complied with the procedures of NEPA prior to
deciding whether to issue a permit for the
trans-Alaska pipeline. The Court was persuaded that existing plaintiff’s counsel would
not be able to adequately represent the Canadian environment in the proceeding. Thus

Wilderness Society seems to hold that NEPA

provides foreign nationals with certain rights
when their environment is endangered byfed-

eral actions.

Even if Wilderness Society is limited ordisavowed by subsequent decisions, the argument
that Congress intended NEPA to applvto the
Trust Territory rematns viable. Though the
peoples of the Trust Territory do not have the
status of United States citizens and are restdent outside the boundaries of the fifty states,
they are subject to the authority of the United
States. Unlike the Canadian citizens in Wia-

derness Society, the peoples of the Trust Territory do not have an independent government

which can move to protect them from United

States actions that are thought to be harmful
to their environment. And the present suit and

previous history of Enewetak demonstrate that
their status as residents of an area adminis-

tered by the United States exposes them to
many more federal actions than would otherwise be the case.
Indeed; in the negotiation of the Trustee-

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4 ERC 1931

ship Agreement, the United States recognized
that the Trust Territory occupies a spectal position vis-a-vis the United States. As originally
proposed, the words “‘as an integral part of the

United States’’ were to be included in the

Trusteeship Agreement’s description of the
powers to be exercised by the administering
authority? Upon objection by the Soviet
Union, the United States Representative made

the following statement to the United Nations

Security Council:
..- In employing the phrase ‘‘as an integral
part of the United States, in article 3, my
Government used the language of the original mandate and also the language used in
stx of the agreements recently approved by
the General Assembly. It does not mean the
extension of United States sovereignty over
the territory, but in fact it means precisely

the opposite.
There has, however, been some misunderstanding on this point and, for the sake

of clarity, the United States Government is
prepared to accept the amendment suggested by the Soviet Union, and to delete
that phrase. In agreeing to this modification, my Government feels that for
record purposes it should affirm that its authority in the trust territory is not to be considered as in any waylessened thereby. .My
Government feels that tt has a duty towards
the peoples of the trust territory to govern

them unth no less consideration than it
would govern any part of its souvreign lerri-

tory. ft feels that the laws, customs andin-

stitutions of the United States form a basis
for the administration of the trust territory
compatible with the spirit of the Charter.
For administrate, legislative and jurtsdtctional convenience in carrying vut its duly

towards the peoples of the trust territory,

the United States intends to treat the trust
territory as uf it were an integral part ofthe
United States... . (Emphasis added). U.N.

Security Council Off. Rec., | 16th Meeting,
March 7, 1947, p. 473 quoted in | White-

man, Digest of International Law at 778
(Released June, 1963).
2 Article 3 of the Frusteeship Agreement reads:

The administering authority [the United States]

shall have full powers of administration, legislation, and jurisdiction over the territory subject to

the provisions of this agreement. and mavapplv

to the trust territory, subject to any modifications
which the administering authority may consider

desirable, such of the laws of the United States as
it may deem appropriate to local conditions and
requirements.
The words ‘tas an integral part of the United
States” would have been inserted after the phrase
“subject to the provisions of this agreement.’ See |
Whiteman, Digest of International Law 777-778
(Released June, 1963).

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