[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 54 (Tuesday, April 20, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3916-S3919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CHAFEE (for himself, Mr. Breaux, Mr. Akaka, Mrs. Boxer, 
        Mr. Dodd, Mr. Edwards, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Graham, Mr. Kerry, 
        Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Mack, Mr. 
        Moynihan, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Reed, Mr. Robb, Mr. Sarbanes, and 
        Mr. Warner):
  S. 835. A bill to encourage the restoration of estuary habitat 
through more efficient project financing and enhanced coordination of 
Federal and non-Federal restoration programs, and for other purposes; 
to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


          estuary habitat restoration partnership act of 1999

  Mr. CHAFEE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation to 
protect our nation's estuaries--the Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Partnership Act of 1999. I am pleased to introduce this bill with 
Senator Breaux and so many other distinguished members of the Senate. I 
am particularly pleased that there is strong bipartisan support among 
the 16 cosponsors of this bill. Such support underscores the importance 
of estuaries to our economy and to our environment.
  To understand the importance of this bill, we must first understand 
exactly what estuaries are and why they are so significant. Estuaries 
are the bays, lagoons, and inlets created when rivers and oceans meet, 
mixing fresh and salt water, creating one of our most economically and 
environmentally valuable natural resources. They support diverse 
habitats--from shellfish beds to beaches to sea grass meadows. 
Estuaries are a crucial component of unique and fragile ecosystems that 
support marine mammals, birds, and wildlife.
  There are many commercial and recreational uses that depend upon 
estuaries, making them integral to our economy as well. Coastal waters 
generate $54 billion in goods and services annually. The fish and 
shellfish industries alone contribute $83 million per year to the 
nation's economy. Estuaries are vital to more than 75 percent of marine 
fisheries in the United States, making those regions important centers 
for commercial and sport fishing, while supporting business and 
creating jobs.
  The great natural beauty of estuaries coupled with the sporting, 
fishing, and other outdoor recreational activities they provide make 
coastal regions important areas for tourism. People come to hike, swim, 
boat, and enjoy nature in the 44,000 square miles of outdoor public 
recreation areas along our coasts. In fact, 180 million Americans visit 
our nation's coasts each year. That is almost 70 percent of the entire 
U.S. population. The large number of visitors has a strong economic 
impact. Coastal recreation and tourism generate $8 to $12 billion 
annually.
  Estuaries are home to countless species unique to these ecosystems, 
including many that are threatened or endangered. From birds such as 
the bald eagle, to shellfish such as the American Oyster, to vegetation 
such as eelgrass--an amazing variety of wildlife relies upon those 
areas.
  It's not only plants and animals that make their homes near 
estuaries. People are moving to these areas at a rapid rate. While 
coastal counties account for 11 percent of the land area of the 
continental U.S., at least half of all Americans call coastal and 
estuarine regions home. Coastal counties are growing at three times the 
rate of non-coastal counties. It is estimated that 100 million people 
live in such areas now, and by 2010 that number is expected to jump to 
127 million.

  Unfortunately, because so many of us enjoy living, working, and 
playing near estuaries, we have stressed the once-abundant resources of 
many of these water bodies. Population growth has been difficult to 
manage in a manner that protects estuaries. Housing developments, 
roads, and shopping centers have moved into areas crucial to the 
preservation of estuaries. They have also placed a more concentrated 
burden on estuaries from pollution caused by infrastructure required by 
greater number of people: more sewers, cars, and paved roads, among 
other things.
  The result of this population growth is painfully evident. Estuary 
habitats across the nation are vanishing. Almost three-quarters of the 
original salt marshes in the Puget Sound have been destroyed. Ninety-
five percent of the original wetlands in the San Francisco

[[Page S3917]]

Bay are gone. Louisiana estuaries are losing 25,000 areas of coastal 
marshes each year. That's an area about the size of Washington, D.C.
  Those habitats that remain are beleaguered by problems and signs of 
distress can be seen in virtually every estuary. The 1996 National 
Water Quality inventory reported that nearly 40 percent of the nation's 
surveyed estuarine waters are too polluted for basic uses, such as 
fishing and swimming. Falling finfish and shellfish stocks due to over-
harvesting and pollution from nutrients and chemicals, proliferation of 
toxic algal blooms, and a reduction in important aquatic vegetation has 
signaled a decline in the condition of many estuaries.
  Nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen carried from city treatment 
works and agricultural land flow down our rivers and into our 
estuaries, leading to over-enrichment of these waters. As a result, 
algal blooms flourish. These blooms rob the water of the dissolved 
oxygen and light that is crucial to the survival of grass beds that 
support shellfish and birds.
  Nutrients have also contributed to the disappearance of eelgrass beds 
in Narragansett Bay on Rhode Island. While once eelgrass beds covered 
thousands of acres of the Bay floor, today that figure has fallen to 
only 100 acres or so. Sadly, the disappearance of eelgrass is not the 
only problem facing the Bay. Its valuable fish runs are disappearing. 
Salt marshes are also in decline. Fifty percent of the salt marsh 
acreage that once existed has been filled, and 70 percent is cut off 
from full tidal flow.
  Nowhere has the problem of nutrient over-enrichment been demonstrated 
more dramatically of late than in the nation's largest estuary: the 
Chesapeake Bay. Nutrient pollution in the Bay has contributed to the 
toxic outbreak of the algae pfiesteria, or ``fish killer'', which has 
been responsible for massive fish kills in the Bay's waterways. While 
scientists believe pfiesteria has existed for thousands of years, only 
recently have we witnessed an alarming escalation in the appearance of 
the algae in its toxic, predatory form.

  Unfortunately, the effects of pfiesteria have not been confined to 
the Chesapeake Bay region. Pfiesteria has also been identified in 
waters off the coast of North Carolina, indicative of a longer trend of 
harmful algal blooms in the U.S. and around the world. This trend 
correlates to an increase in nutrients in our waterways. Perhaps more 
distressing than the environmental threat posed by pfiesteria is the 
fact that pfiesteria has also been linked to negative health effects in 
humans.
  Estuaries are also endangered by pathogens. Microbes from sewage 
treatment works and other sources have contaminated waters, making 
shellfish unfit for human consumption. In Peconsic Bay on Long Island, 
for instance, more than 4,700 acres of bay bottom is closed either 
seasonally or year-round due to pathogens.
  Toxic chemicals such as PCBs, heavy metals, and pesticides degrade 
the environment of estuaries as well. Runoff from lawns, streets, and 
farms, sewage treatment plants, atmospheric deposition, and industrial 
discharges expose finfish and shellfish to the chemicals. The chemicals 
are persistent and tend to bioaccumulate, concentrating in the tissues 
of the fish. The fish may then pose a risk to human health if consumed.
  In Massachusetts Bays, for instance, diseased lobster and flounder 
have been discovered in certain areas, prompting consumption 
advisories. Unfortunately, this problem is not an isolated one. In many 
of our nation's urban harbors polluted runoff creates ``hot spots'' of 
toxic contamination so severe that nothing can survive.
  Estuaries are also threatened by newly introduced species. 
Overpopulation of new species can eradicate native populations. 
Eradication of even one native species has the potential to alter the 
food web, increase erosion, and interfere with navigation, agriculture, 
and fishing. In Tampa Bay, for example, native plant species have been 
replaced by newly introduced species, altering the Bay's ecological 
balance.
  All of these changes to the condition of our estuaries threaten not 
only our environment, but the economies and jobs that rely upon 
estuaries. Indeed, the stresses we have placed on estuaries in the past 
may jeopardize our future enjoyment of the benefits they provide, 
unless we continue to strengthen the commitments we have made to 
protecting this resource. Thankfully, the fate of the nation's 
estuaries is far from decided. We are beginning to see signs that 
efforts made by many to restore and protect our estuaries are having a 
positive effect and turning the tide against degradation.

  Nutrient levels in the Chesapeake Bay are declining due in part to 
programs designed to better manage fertilizer applications to farmland 
and lawns and to reduce point source discharges. People in New York 
have targeted sewer overflows, non-point runoff, and sewage treatment 
plants by implementing techniques to prevent stormwater pollution and 
mitigate runoff. By doing so, they hope to reduce the threat of 
pathogen contamination in Long Island Sound.
  In Rhode Island, a non-profit group, Save the Bay, has partnered with 
school kids to do something about the loss of eelgrass beds in 
Narragansett Bay. The children are growing eelgrass in their schools 
and it is then planted in the Bay by Save the Bay. In this way, they 
hope to encourage growth of the beds that provide a home for shellfish 
and a food source for countless other Bay creatures.
  In Florida, a partnership of volunteers, students, businesses, and 
federal, state, and local governments prepared sites and planted native 
vegetation on six acres of newly-constructed wetlands in a park 
adjacent to Tampa Bay. The students received job training, education, 
and summer employment, and the Bay received a helping hand fighting the 
invasive species that threaten those native to it.
  The ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Partnership Act'' will further 
these efforts to preserve and restore estuaries. The Act is designed to 
make the best use of scarce resources by channeling them directly to 
those citizens and organizations that best know how to restore 
estuaries. It will help groups like those in Rhode Island and Tampa Bay 
continue their work while encouraging others to join them in projects 
of their own.
  The ultimate goal is to restore 1,000,000 acres of estuary habitat by 
2010. To achieve this goal, the bill establishes a streamlined council 
consisting of representatives from citizen organizations and state and 
federal governments. This ``Collaborative Council'' will serve two 
functions. The first function is to develop a comprehensive national 
estuary habitat restoration strategy. The strategy will be the basis 
for the second function of the Council: efficient coordination of 
federal and non-federal estuary restoration activities by providing a 
means for prioritizing and selecting habitat restoration projects.
  In developing the strategy, the Council will review existing federal 
estuary restoration plans and programs, create a set of proposals for 
making the most of incentives to increase private-sector participation 
in estuary restoration, and make certain that the strategy is developed 
and implemented consistent with existing federal estuary management and 
restoration programs.
  The Council's second function is to select habitat restoration 
projects presented to the Council by citizen organizations and other 
non-federal entities, based on the priorities outlined under the 
strategy. Those projects that have a high degree of support from non-
federal sources for development, maintenance, and funding, fall within 
the restoration strategy developed by the Council, and are the most 
feasible will have the greatest degree of success in receiving funding.

  A project must receive at least 35 percent of its funding from non-
federal sources in order to be approved. Priority will be given to 
those projects where more than 50 percent of its support comes from 
non-federal sources. Priority status also requires that the project is 
part of an existing federal estuary plan and that it is located in a 
watershed that has a program in place to prevent water pollution that 
might re-impair the estuary if it were restored.
  To achieve its 1,000,000 acre goal, the Act does not establish 
mandates or create a new bureaucracy. Instead, the Act encourages 
partnerships between

[[Page S3918]]

government and those that are most concerned and best able to 
effectively preserve estuaries--citizens. It will make the most of 
federal dollars by providing those citizens and organizations that are 
most affected by the health of our estuaries the opportunity and the 
incentive to continue their efforts to improve them through projects 
that they develop, implement, and monitor themselves.
  This approach has several advantages. All estuaries are not the same, 
nor are the problems that face each estuary the same. Therefore, the 
Act allows citizens to tailor a project targeted to meet the specific 
challenges posed by the particular estuary in their region. In this 
way, we are doing the most to help protect estuaries while wasting none 
of our scarce federal funds. The Act also ensures the continued prudent 
use of funds through information-gathering, monitoring, and reporting 
on the projects.
  Estuaries contribute to our economy and to our environment, and for 
these reasons alone they should be protected. But, they also contribute 
to the fabric of many of the communities that surround them. They 
define much of a region's history and cultures as well as the way 
people live and work there today.
  For all of these reasons, then, we must make efficient use of the 
resources we have in order to assist those people that are protecting 
and restoring our estuaries. The Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Partnership Act is the best, most direct way to do just that. 
Therefore, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a section-by-section 
analysis of the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the analysis was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

     Section 1. Short title
       This section cites provides that the Act may be cited as 
     ``The Estuary Habitat Restoration Partnership Act of 1999''.
     Section 2. Findings
       This section establishes Congress' findings. Congress finds 
     that estuaries provide some of the most ecologically and 
     economically productive habitat for an extensive variety of 
     plants, fish, wildlife, and waterfowl. It also finds that 
     estuaries and coastal regions of the United States are home 
     to one-half the population of the United States and provide 
     essential habitat for 75 percent of the Nation's commercial 
     fish catch and 80 to 90 percent of its recreational fish 
     catch.
       It further finds that estuaries are gravely threatened by 
     habitat alteration and loss from pollution, development, and 
     overuse. Congress finds that successful restoration of 
     estuaries demands the coordination of Federal, State, and 
     local estuary habitat restoration programs and that the 
     Federal, State, local, and private cooperation in estuary 
     habitat restoration activities in existence on the date of 
     enactment of this Act should be strengthened. Also, new 
     public and public-private estuary habitat restoration 
     partnerships should be established.
     Section 3. Purposes
       The bill establishes a program to restore one million acres 
     of estuary habitat by the year 2010. the bill requires the 
     coordination of existing Federal, State and local plans, 
     programs, and studies. It authorizes partnerships among 
     public agencies at all levels of government and between the 
     public and private sectors. The bill authorizes estuary 
     habitat restoration activities, and it requires monitoring 
     and research capabilities to assure that restoration efforts 
     are based on sound scientific understanding.
       This measure will give a real incentive to existing State 
     and local efforts to restore and protect estuary habitat. 
     Although there are numerous estuary restoration programs 
     already in existence, non-Federal entities have had trouble 
     sifting through the often small, overlapping and fragmented 
     habitat restoration programs. The bill will coordinate these 
     programs and restoration plans, combine State, local and 
     Federal resources and supplement needed additional funding to 
     restore estuaries.
     Section 4. Definitions
       This section defines terms used throughout the Act. Among 
     the most important definitions are:
       ``Estuary'' is defined as a body of water and its 
     associated physical, biological, and chemical elements, in 
     which fresh water from a river or stream meets and mixes with 
     salt water from the ocean.
       ``Estuary Habitat'' is defined as the complex of physical 
     and hydrologic features within estuaries and their associated 
     ecosystems, including salt and fresh water coastal 
     marshes, coastal forested wetlands and other coastal 
     wetlands, tidal flats, natural shoreline areas, sea grass 
     meadows, kelp beds, river deltas, and river and stream 
     banks under tidal influence.
       ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Activity'' is defined as an 
     activity that results in improving an estuary's habitat, 
     including both physical and functional restoration, with a 
     goal toward a self-sustaining ecologically-based system that 
     is integrated with its surrounding landscape. Examples of 
     restoration activities include: the control of non-native and 
     invasive species; the reestablishment of physical features 
     and biological and hydrologic functions; the cleanup of 
     contamination; and the reintroduction of native species, 
     through planting or natural succession.
     Section 5. Establishment of the Collaborative Council
       This section establishes an interagency Collaborative 
     Council composed of the Secretary of the Army, the Under 
     Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, Department of Commerce, 
     the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and 
     the Secretary of the Interior, through the Fish and Wildlife 
     Service. The two principal functions of the Council are: (1) 
     to develop a national strategy to restore estuary habitat; 
     and (2) to select habitat restoration projects that will 
     receive the funds provided in the bill.
       The Army Corps of Engineers is to chair the Council. The 
     Corps is to work cooperatively with the other members of the 
     Council.
     Section 6. Duties of the Collaborative Council
       This section establishes a process to coordinate existing 
     Federal, State and local resources and activities directed 
     toward estuary habitat restoration. It also sets forth the 
     process by which projects are to be selected by the Council 
     for funding under this Title.
       Habitat Restoration Strategy.--This section requires the 
     Council to draft a strategy that will serve as a national 
     framework for restoring estuaries. The strategy should 
     coordinate Federal, State, and local estuary plans programs 
     and studies.
       In developing the strategy, the Council should consult with 
     State, local and tribal governments and other non-Federal 
     entities, including representatives from coastal States 
     representing the Atlantic, Pacific, and the Gulf of Mexico; 
     local governments from coastal communities; and nonprofit 
     organizations that are actively participating in carrying out 
     estuary habitat restoration projects.
       Selection of Projects.--This section also requires the 
     Council to establish application criteria for restoration 
     projects. The Council is required to consider a number of 
     factors in developing criteria. In addition to the factors 
     mentioned in the legislation, the Council is to consider both 
     the quantity and quality of habitat restored in relation to 
     the overall cost of a project. The consideration of these 
     factors will provide the information required to evaluate 
     performance, at both the project and program levels, and 
     facilitate the production of biennial reports in the 
     strategy.
       Subsection (b) of section 105 requires the project 
     applicant to obtain the approval of State or local agencies, 
     where such approval is appropriate. In States such as Oregon, 
     where coastal beaches and estuaries are publicly owned and 
     managed, proposals for estuary habitat restoration projects 
     require the approval of the State before being submitted to 
     the Council.
       Priority Projects.--Among the projects that meet the 
     criteria listed above, the Council shall give priority for 
     funding to those projects that meet any of the factors 
     cited in subsection(b)(4) of this section.
       One of the priority factors is that the project be part of 
     an approved estuary management or restoration plan. It is 
     envisioned that funding provided through this legislation 
     would assist all local communities in meeting the goals and 
     objectives of estuary restoration, with priority given to 
     those areas that have approved estuary management plans. For 
     example, the Sarasota Bay area in Florida is presently 
     implementing its Comprehensive Conservation and Management 
     Plan (CCMP), which focuses on restoring lost habitat. This is 
     being accomplished by: reducing nitrogen pollution to 
     increase sea grass coverage; constructing salt water 
     wetlands; and building artificial reefs for juvenile fish 
     habitat. Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island also is in the 
     process of implementing its CCMP. Current efforts to improve 
     the Bay's water quality and restore its habitat address the 
     uniqueness of the Narraganset Bay watershed.
     Section 7. Cost sharing of estuary habitat restoration 
         projects
       This section strengthens local and private sector 
     participation in estuary restoration efforts by building 
     public-private restoration partnerships. This section 
     establishes a Federal cost-share requirement of no more than 
     65 percent of the cost of a project. The non-Federal share is 
     required to be at least 35 percent of the cost of a project. 
     Lands, easements, services, or other in-kind contributions 
     may be used to meet non-Federal match requirement.
     Section 8. Monitoring and maintenance
       This section assures that available information will be 
     used to improve the methods for assuring successful long-term 
     habitat restoration. The Under Secretary for Oceans and 
     Atmosphere (NOAA) shall maintain a database of restoration 
     projects carried out under this Act, including information on 
     project techniques, project completion, monitoring data, and 
     other relevant information.
       The Council shall publish a biennial report to Congress 
     that includes program activities, including the number of 
     acres restored; the percent of restored habitat monitored 
     under a plan; and an estimate of the long-term success of 
     different restoration techniques used in habitat restoration 
     projects.

[[Page S3919]]

     Section 9. Cooperative agreements and memoranda of 
         understanding
       This section authorizes the Council to enter into 
     cooperative agreements and execute memoranda of understanding 
     with Federal and State agencies, private institutions, and 
     tribal entities, as is necessary to carry out the 
     requirements of the bill.
     Section 10. Distribution of appropriations for estuary 
         habitat restoration activities
       This section authorizes the Secretary to disburse funds to 
     the other agencies responsible for carrying out the 
     requirements of this Act. The Council members are to work 
     together to develop an appropriate mechanism for the 
     disbursement of funds between Council members. For instance, 
     section 107 of the bill requires the Under Secretary to 
     maintain a data base of restoration projects carried out 
     under this legislation. NOAA shall utilize funds disbursed 
     from the Secretary to maintain the data base.
     Section 11. Authorization of appropriations
       The total of $315,000,000 for fiscal years 2000 through 
     2004 is authorized to carry out estuary habitat restoration 
     projects under this section. The $315,000,000 would be 
     distributed as follows: $40,000,000 for fiscal year 2000; 
     $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, and $75,000,000 for each of 
     fiscal years 2002 through 2004.
     Section 12. National estuary program
       This section amends section 430(g)(2) of the Federal Water 
     Pollution Control Act to provide explicit authority for the 
     Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to issue 
     grants not only for assisting activities necessary for the 
     development of comprehensive conservation and management 
     plans (CCMPs) but also for the implementation of CCMPs. 
     Implementation for purposes of this section includes managing 
     and overseeing the implementation of CCMPs consistent with 
     section 320(b)(6) of the Act, which provides that management 
     conferences, among other things, are to `monitor the 
     effectiveness of actions taken pursuant to the [CCMP].' 
     Examples of implementation activities include: enhanced 
     monitoring activities; habitat mapping; habitat acquisition; 
     best management practices to reduce urban and rural polluted 
     runoff; and the organization of workshops for local elected 
     officials and professional water quality managers about 
     habitat and water quality issues.
       The National Estuary Program is an important partnership 
     among Federal, State, and local governments to protect 
     estuaries of national significance threatened by pollution. A 
     major goal of the program has been to prepare CCMPs for the 
     28 nationally designated estuaries. To facilitate preparation 
     of the plans, the Federal Government has provided grant 
     funds, while State and local governments have developed the 
     plans. The partnership has been a success in that 18 of 28 
     nationally designated estuaries have completed plans.
       In order to continue and strengthen this partnership, grant 
     funds should be eligible for use in the implementation of the 
     completed plans as well as for their development. 
     Appropriations for grants for CCMPs are authorized at 
     $2,5000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 and 2001. This 
     increase reflects the growth in the National Estuary Program 
     since the program was last authorized in 1987. In 1991 when 
     the authorization expired, 17 local estuary programs existed; 
     now there are 28 programs. The cost of implementing the 28 
     estuary programs will require significant resources. However, 
     State and local governments should take primary 
     responsibility for implementing CCMPs.
     Section 13. General provisions
       This section provides the Secretary of the Army with the 
     authority to carry out responsibilities under this Act, and 
     it clarifies that habitat restoration is one of the Corps' 
     mission.

  Mr. BREAUX. Mr. President, I am pleased and honored to join with my 
friend and colleague, Senator John Chafee, Chairman of the Senate 
Committee on Environment and Public Works, to introduce legislation to 
restore America's estuaries. Our bill is entitled the ``Estuary Habitat 
Restoration Partnership Act of 1999.''
  In the 105th Congress, on October 14, 1998, the Senate passed by 
unanimous consent S. 1222, the ``Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Partnership Act of 1998.'' I joined with Senator Chafee and 15 other 
Senators to introduce the bill on September 25, 1997. On July 9, 1998, 
I testified on its behalf during hearings held by Senator Chafee and 
the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
  I am pleased that the Senate gave its unanimous approval to the 
bill's passage in the last Congress and look forward to such consent in 
the 106th Congress.
  Estuaries are a national resource and treasure. As a nation, 
therefore, we should work together at all levels and in all sectors to 
help restore them.
  Other Senators have joined with Senator Chafee and me as original 
cosponsors of the bill. Together, we want to draw attention to the 
significant value of the nation's estuaries and the need to restore 
them.
  It is also my distinct pleasure today to say with pride that 
Louisianians have been in the forefront of this movement to recognize 
the importance of estuaries and to propose legislation to restore them. 
The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, an organization which is 
well-known for its proactive work on behalf of the Louisiana coast, has 
been from the inception an integral part of the national coalition, 
Restore America's Estuaries, which has proposed and supports the 
restoration legislation.
  The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and Restore America's 
Estuaries are to be commended for their leadership and initiative in 
bringing this issue to the nation's attention.
  In essence, the bill introduced today proposes a single goal and has 
one emphasis and focus. It seeks to create a voluntary, community-
driven, incentive-based program which builds partnerships between the 
federal government, state and local governments and the private sector 
to restore estuaries, including sharing in the cost of restoration 
projects.
  In Louisiana, we have very valuable estuaries, including the 
Ponchartrain, Barataria-Terrebonne, and Vermilion Bay systems. 
Louisiana's estuaries are vital because they have helped and will 
continue to help sustain local communities, their cultures and their 
economies.
  I encourage Senators from coastal and non-coastal states alike to 
evaluate the bill and to join in its support with Senator Chafee, me 
and the other Senators who are original bill cosponsors.
  I look forward to working with Senator Chafee and other Senators on 
behalf of the bill and with the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana 
and Restore American's Estuaries.
  By working together at all levels of government and in the private 
and public sectors, we can help to restore estuaries. We can, together, 
help to educate the public about the important roles which estuaries 
play in our daily lives through their many contributions to public 
safety and well-being, to the environment and to recreation and 
commerce.
                                 ______