[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 68 (Wednesday, May 21, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4888-S4889]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CRAIG (for himself and Mr. Kempthorne):
  S. 774. A bill to provide for the stabilization, enhancement, 
restoration, and management of the Coeur d'Alene River basin watershed; 
to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


  the coeur d'alene river basin environmental restoration act of 1997

 Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, I am today introducing, with the 
cosponsorship of Senator Kempthorne, the Coeur d'Alene River Basin 
Environmental Restoration Act of 1997. This legislation would allow for 
a workable solution to clean up the historic effects of mining on the 
Coeur d'Alene Basin in North Idaho. This bill is similar to a bill (S. 
1614) I introduced in the last Congress.
  This legislation establishes a process that is centered around an 
action plan developed between the Governor of the State of Idaho and a 
Citizens Advisory Commission comprised of fourteen representatives of 
affected State and Federal government agencies, private citizens, the 
Coeur d'Alene Indian Tribe; and affected industries. The 
responsibilities of this Commission are very important to the ultimate 
success of cleaning up the Basin. I would like to note that a 
Commission that mirrors the one in this legislation was created by the 
Idaho legislature and that legislation was signed into law by Governor 
Phil Batt. I am indeed pleased that Idaho has put in place the citizen 
committee that is the crux of this plan to clean up the Silver Valley.
  The Silver Valley of North Idaho has made contributions to the 
national economy and to all of our country's war efforts for well over 
a century. The federal government has been involved in every phase of 
mineral production over the history of the Valley. It is, therefore, 
appropriate that Congress specifically legislate a resolution of 
natural resources damages in the Coeur d'Alene Basin and participate in 
funding such a plan.
  I want to make clear this legislation does not interfere with the 
ongoing Superfund cleanup within the 21-square mile Bunker Hill site. 
This legislation sets up a framework for voluntary cleanup of affected 
areas outside this 21-square mile area. In drafting this legislation, I 
have worked with the mining industry, the Coeur d'Alene tribe, local 
governments, the Governor of Idaho, and citizens in North Idaho. It is 
only through the involvement of all these parties that a solution will 
be reached.
  Throughout this effort it has been clear that all parties want the 
Basin cleaned up, and they want the cleanup done with the concerns of 
local citizens and entities addressed and with controls and cleanup 
decisions made in Idaho, not in Washington, DC. These are the guiding 
principles that I have applied in developing this legislation.
  Local cleanup has already begun in the headwaters of the Basin's 
drainage. Nine Mile Creek and Canyon Creek have had proven engineering 
designs implemented within their drainages. The Coeur d'Alene River 
Basin Environmental Restoration Act of 1997 would assure this type of 
meaningful restoration could continue. However, the actions needed in 
each part of the Basin are not clear. That is why my bill calls for the 
Governor of Idaho and the Citizens Advisory Commission to develop an 
Action Plan that can address the varying conditions within the

[[Page S4889]]

Basin. For example, engineering solutions will certainly work in 
portions of the Basin--but not every place. The steeper gradient 
streams in the upper Basin respond well to engineering fixes, but these 
types of fixes may only exacerbate problems in the lower, flatter 
portions of the Basin. Local input and control through the action plan 
can address such diversity and the need for varying environmental 
fixes.
  The Department of Justice is currently pursuing a lawsuit for alleged 
natural resources damages in the area addressed by this legislation. 
For the federal government to follow such a course is folly. When the 
federal government litigates under Superfund, the members of the legal 
profession benefit, as litigation eats away at whatever resources are 
available for a cleanup. Litigation does not benefit the citizens 
affected by a cleanup and certainly does not benefit the resources that 
are purported to be the primary consideration when such a suit is 
pursued. I do not intend to see cleanup resources in North Idaho 
squandered in litigation. It is my goal to see that Coeur d'Alene Basin 
cleanup is not litigated away. That is the reason we have introduced 
this legislation. it will clean up the Basin, not litigiously waste the 
Basin's resources.
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