-4LIMITED °C. OT™PORAL USE Bikini, Eniwetok (Ujelang Atoll) and Kwajalein (Ebeye and Mid-Corridor), Johnston I[sland ' Bikini The question of the return of the people of Bikini to their home island has been a matter of on-going concern of the Council for a number of years. On August 12, 1968, the President announced that Bikini Atoll could again be inhabited by the people of the Marshall Islands who had been removed in 1946 to permit nuclear testing in the area. The announcement followed extensive studies by the Atomic Energy Commission, which concluded that the main isiands of the Atoll (Bikini and Eneu) are now safe for habitation, and , x ee by the Defense Department which concluded that security requirements no longer precluded the return of the inhabitants. A Bikini resettlement program, announced by the Secretary of the Interior in January 1969, will cost approximately $3 million over a six-year period. The initial phase of the program--the cleanup of test-related debris, unusable structures and scrub vegetation over a period of about six months-- was the responsibility of the Defense Department This was accomplished during the period February - September 1969, with funding to the extent of $600,000 shared by the Department of Defense and the Atomic Energy Commission. Funds to complete the cleanup, to begin replanting and to construct housing and Village facilities, are being provided the Department of Interior _ by the U.S. Congress through the regular budgetary processes. The Atomic Energy Commission is responsibile for radiological safety, including the medical surveillance of:-the Bikini people after they return to their home atoll. , The Interior Department is responsible for replanting coconut trees, construction of housing and community facilities, and the actual resettlement of the Bikinians. Approximately 350 Bikinians currently live on Kili and an estimated 200 more people have land rights to Bikini. \