[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 53 (Tuesday, April 23, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H3704]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




REPUBLICANS' SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT MEANS DIRTIER TAP WATER IN GEORGIA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Georgia [Ms. McKinney] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. McKINNEY. Mr. Speaker, we are also told that some of the slaves 
actually asked for and fought for a continuation of slavery. That did 
not make slavery right. America needs a raise.
  Now, I came down here to talk about the Republican agenda with 
respect to the environment. I am not surprised that for his Earth Day 
stunt Speaker Gingrich took young children to the zoo. If Speaker 
Gingrich has his way on the Endangered Species Act, about the only 
place we will be able to find endangered species, or even nonendangered 
species, will be in the zoo.
   Mr. Speaker, constituents have a particular problem, my constituents 
have a particular problem, with the health effects from chronic 
exposure to arsenic. In fact, I have constituents who now suffer from 
arsenical keratosis because of their exposure to arsenic. Yet, if the 
Republicans have their way, not only the communities of Hyde Park and 
Virginia subdivisions will be reeling from the effects of chronic 
exposure to arsenic, we all may be, because their version of the Safe 
Drinking Water Act means dirtier tap water in Georgia. They voted 
against an amendment that would have prohibited the introduction of 
arsenic into the water supply. It is almost unbelievable, but it is 
true.
  With respect to the Safe Drinking Water Act, that would result in 
dirtier tap water from my State of Georgia. The Republicans' draft 
legislation of the Safe Drinking Water Act would weaken the laws' basic 
health standard, delay health standards for highly hazardous 
contaminants, and reduce the public's right to know about health 
threats from contaminated drinking water.
  In 1993 and 1994, over 150,000 Georgians drank tap water that failed 
to meet the EPA's basic health standards for bacterial toxic chemicals, 
fecal matter and other dangerous microbes. The House of Representatives 
would have cut $15 million to help cities and towns upgrade drinking 
water plants.
  With respect to the Clean Water Act, lakes, rivers and beaches in 
Georgia would have been fouled. If the Clean Water Act became law, it 
would have allowed untreated sewage to be discharged into coastal 
waters. It would have made the cleanup of toxic chemicals in the Great 
Lakes voluntary, it would have redefined most of the Nation's wetlands 
out of existence, and, of course, it would have gutted the EPA's 
efforts to control farm runoff, the single largest source of 
unregulated water pollution today.
  In 1993 and 1994, over 140,000 Georgians drank tap water that was 
contaminated by fecal matter or other bacteria, in part because of 
sewage discharges into rivers and lakes at 31 locations throughout the 
State.
  In terms of wetlands, the Clean Water Act creates a new definition of 
wetlands protection for 73 million acres of wetlands, or 71 percent of 
the remaining wetlands in 48 States. This would leave these lands to be 
developed with no Federal oversight or restrictions whatsoever. Of the 
5.3 million acres of wetlands in Georgia, an estimated 4.7 million 
acres, 90 percent of the total wetlands remaining in the State, would 
no longer be considered wetlands under the proposed bill.
  With respect to Superfund, the Republicans have introduced 
legislation that would bail out polluters and severely slow down 
cleanup of toxic dumps.
  The most recent draft of the bill released by House Republicans would 
abolish all liability for polluters who generated and transported waste 
prior to 1987. Even giant corporations would get off the hook for all 
toxic waste they sent off site prior to 1987.
  With respect to the toxics released inventory, their proposal would 
curtail reporting requirements for up to 90 percent of toxic chemical 
emissions that factories must report to the EPA.
   Mr. Speaker, I would just conclude by saying that Kevin Phillips 
said that this may be the worst Congress in 50 years. The Republicans 
are well on their way to proving that.

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