[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 142 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 4, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
               LEGISLATION TO MODIFY THE LaFARGE PROJECT

                                 ______


                          HON. STEVE GUNDERSON

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, October 4, 1994

  Mr. GUNDERSON. Mr. Speaker, Today the residents of the Kickapoo 
Valley in Wisconsin are winners. With the passage of the Water 
Resources and Development Act of 1994, they see an opportunity to lay 
to rest economic stagnation which has plagued the area for 30 years.
  On June 14, Representative Petri joined me in the introduction of 
H.R. 4575, a measure which would direct the Secretary of the Army to 
transfer to the State of Wisconsin lands and improvements associated 
with the LaFarge Dam and Lake Project--a Corps of Engineers flood 
control project initiated in 1962. This legislation would deauthorize 
the construction of the reservoir and dam, while completing other 
features of the original project.
  Prior to 1962, the LaFarge area was a farm community which suffered 
from severe flooding each spring. Responding the residents' complaints, 
the Federal Government promised to correct the flooding problem by 
constructing a reservoir and dam. For environmental reasons, work was 
suspended in July 1975, leaving 61 percent of the dam uncompleted, 
while 80 percent of the land was acquired. By 1990, it was estimated 
that annual losses resulting from the removal of family farms and the 
unrealized tourism benefits anticipated with the completion of the 
project totaled over 300 jobs and $8 million for the local economy, 
further exacerbating poverty in the area.
  In March of this year, the Wisconsin Legislature created the Kickapoo 
Valley Reserve and Governing Board. Having established this entity, the 
State of Wisconsin is prepared to receive the transfer of land from the 
Federal Government, pending action by the Congress.
  I want to take this opportunity to thank Representatives Applegate, 
Boehlert, and Petri, and the Subcommittee on Water Resources and 
Environmental staff for their conscientious efforts in bringing this 
legislation to fruition in the House of Representatives.
  I encourage my colleagues in the other body to pass this legislation 
during the remaining days of the 103d Congress. By doing so, we have 
seized on a golden opportunity to make a profound difference in the 
lives of those in the Kickapoo Valley, while sustaining the region's 
rich environmental surroundings for generations to come.

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