[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 67 (Friday, May 22, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E951]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 21, 1998

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, today, I would like to introduce two bills--
one to authorize the Mongaup Visitor's Center, and the other to extend 
the Upper Delaware Citizen's Advisory Counsel.
  Mr. Speaker, as you may know, in 1978, along with out good friend and 
colleague Joe McDade, I introduced Federal legislation establishing the 
Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River as a component of the 
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
  The property proposed as the location of the Upper Delaware Scenic 
and Recreational River's primary visitor facility--the Mongaup Visitor 
Center--is owned by the State of New York's Department of Environmental 
Conservation. The property was acquired by the State in 1986 as part of 
a much larger purchase of a 10,000-acre tract intended to provide 
habitat for a population of wintering bald eagles. New York State 
legislation authorizing Federal development of the property as a 
visitor center by means of a long-term lease was passed in 1993. A 
legislative support data package was prepared in 1994 for Federal 
legislation authorizing development of the site, to appropriate funds 
for development and to increase the Upper Delaware's operational base 
to provide for year-round operation.
  The site for the Mongaup Visitor Center contains abundant natural and 
cultural resources and this proposal will identify and develop 
strategies to protect the Mongaup area's natural resources, including: 
wintering bald eagles; upland forest; hemlock and laurel gorges and 
steep slopes; riverine and flood plain forest, and a mile of river 
front with natural sand beaches. The possible presence of prehistoric 
elements will also be evaluated.
  The visitor center will benefit the community in many respects. It 
will serve as an educational asset, a local museum, a class room, and 
meeting place. Bordered by the Delaware River, the Mongaup River and 
New York State highway route 97 in the town of Deerpark in Orange 
County, NY--it is the only center of its kind within an hour's drive 
from New York City. Both the proposed visitor center, Mongaup site and 
the Upper Delaware Valley have enormous unrealized potential to provide 
both the local and visiting public with an exceptional experience.
  I am also introducing a bill that will extend the Upper Delaware 
Citizens Advisory Council for another 10 years. The Upper Delaware CAC 
provides an excellent forum for citizens of the Upper Delaware to have 
an opportunity to impact and interact with the National Park Service 
and Department of the Interior.
  Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to help pass these two measures 
which will benefit the State of New York on economic, environmental and 
educational levels.

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