[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 539 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.539
One Hundred Ninth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the fourth day of January, two thousand and five
An Act
To designate certain National Forest System land in the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation
System.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Caribbean National Forest Act of
2005''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Map.--The term ``map'' means the map dated April 13, 2004,
and entitled ``El Toro Proposed Wilderness Area''.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
Agriculture.
SEC. 3. WILDERNESS DESIGNATION, CARIBBEAN NATIONAL FOREST, PUERTO RICO.
(a) El Toro Wilderness.--
(1) In general.--In furtherance of the purposes of the
Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the approximately 10,000
acres of land in the Caribbean National Forest/Luquillo
Experimental Forest in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico as generally
depicted on the map are designated as wilderness and as a component
of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
(2) Designation.--The land designated in paragraph (1) shall be
known as the El Toro Wilderness.
(3) Wilderness boundaries.--The El Toro Wilderness shall
consist of the land generally depicted on the map.
(b) Map and Boundary Description.--
(1) In general.--As soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall--
(A) prepare a boundary description of the El Toro
Wilderness; and
(B) submit the map and the boundary description to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives.
(2) Public inspection and treatment.--The map and the boundary
description prepared under paragraph (1)(A)--
(A) shall be on file and available for public inspection in
the office of the Chief of the Forest Service; and
(B) shall have the same force and effect as if included in
this Act.
(3) Errors.--The Secretary may correct clerical and
typographical errors in the map and the boundary description
prepared under paragraph (1)(A).
(c) Administration.--
(1) In general.--Subject to valid existing rights, the
Secretary shall administer the El Toro Wilderness in accordance
with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.) and this Act.
(2) Effective date of wilderness act.--With respect to the El
Toro Wilderness, any reference in the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C.
1131 et seq.) to the effective date of that Act shall be deemed to
be a reference to the date of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Special Management Considerations.--Consistent with the
Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), nothing in this Act precludes
the installation and maintenance of hydrologic, meteorological,
climatological, or atmospheric data collection and remote transmission
facilities, or any combination of those facilities, in any case in
which the Secretary determines that the facilities are essential to the
scientific research purposes of the Luquillo Experimental Forest.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.