(a) Meandering in the surveying of submerged land
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), whenever the Secretary surveys land selected by a Native, a Native Corporation, or the State pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the Alaska Statehood Act, or this Act, lakes, rivers, and streams shall be meandered in accordance with the principles in the Bureau of Land Management, “Manual of Surveying Instructions” (1973).
(2) If title to lands beneath navigable waters of a lake less than fifty acres in size or a river or stream less than three chains in width did not vest in the State pursuant to the Submerged Lands Act, such lake, river, or stream shall not be meandered.
(3) The Secretary is not required to determine the navigability of a lake, river, or stream which because of its size or width is required to be meandered or to compute the acreage of the land beneath such lake, river, or stream or to describe such land in any conveyance document.
(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require ground survey or monumentation of meanderlines.
(b) Ownership of riparian lands; ratification of memorandum of agreement
(1) Whenever, either before or after August 16, 1988, the Secretary conveys land to a Native, a Native Corporation, or the State pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the Alaska Statehood Act, or this Act which abuts or surrounds a meanderable lake, river, or stream, all right, title, and interest of the United States, if any, in the land under such lake, river, or stream lying between the uplands and the median line or midpoint, as the case may be, shall vest in and shall not be charged against the acreage entitlement of such Native or Native Corporation or the State. The right, title, and interest vested in a Native or Native Corporation shall be no greater an estate than the estate he or it is conveyed in the land which abuts or surrounds the lake, river, or stream.
(2) The specific terms, conditions, procedures, covenants, reservations, and other restrictions set forth in the document entitled, “Memorandum of Agreement between the United States Department of the Interior and the State of Alaska” dated March 28, 1984, signed by the Secretary and the Governor of Alaska and submitted to the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate, are hereby incorporated in this section and are ratified as to the duties and obligations of the United States and the State, as a matter of Federal law.
(c) Interim conveyances and patents; navigability of streams; award of costs and attorney’s fees
(1) The execution of an interim conveyance or patent, as appropriate, by the Bureau of Land Management which conveys an area of land selected by a Native or Native Corporation which includes, surrounds, or abuts a lake, river, or stream, or any portion thereof, shall be the final agency action with respect to a decision of the Secretary of the Interior that such lake, river, or stream, is or is not navigable, unless such decision was validly appealed to an agency or board of the Department of the Interior on or before December 2, 1980.
(2) No agency or board of the Department of the Interior other than the Bureau of Land Management shall have authority to determine the navigability of a lake, river, or stream within an area selected by a Native or Native Corporation pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act or this Act unless a determination by the Bureau of Land Management that such lake, river, or stream, is or is not navigable, was validly appealed to such agency or board on or before December 2, 1980.
(3) If title to land conveyed to a Native Corporation pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act or this Act which underlies a lake, river, or stream is challenged in a court of competent jurisdiction and such court determines that such land is owned by the Native Corporation, the Native Corporation shall be awarded a money judgment against the plaintiffs in an amount equal to its costs and attorney’s fees, including costs and attorney’s fees incurred on appeal.
(d) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the terms “navigable” and “navigability” means navigable for the purpose of determining title to lands beneath navigable waters, as between the United States and the several States pursuant to the Submerged Lands Act and section 6(m) of the Alaska Statehood Act.
Other information:
Study and Report on Impact of Implementation of 1988 Amendment on Conservation System Units; Pub.L. 100-395, section 103, August 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 979 provided that:
(a) In general. The Secretary shall prepare a report that assesses the effects of the implementation of section 101 of this Act on Conservation System Units as defined in section 102(4) of the Alaska National Lands Conservation Act and makes recommendations for appropriate action.
(b) Scope of report. The report required to be prepared under subsection (a) shall at a minimum
(1) identify and estimate the acreage of all lands currently patented to or selected by a Native, Native Corporation, or the State pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, the Alaska Statehood Act, or this Act that is within the boundaries of Conservation System Units;
(2) establish priorities for the acquisition of lands currently patented to or selected by a Native, Native Corporation or the State that are within the boundaries of Conservation System Units;
(3) make recommendations as to administrative or Congressional action deemed appropriate to reduce any adverse effects of section 101 on the management of lands or resources within Conservation System Units.
(c) Submissions to Congress. Within one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a report pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this section to the Committee on Environment and Public Works and Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate and to the appropriate committees of the United States House of Representatives.