[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 26 (Thursday, March 1, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E255-E257]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        INTRODUCTION OF ROCKY FLATS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 1, 2001

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I am today reintroducing a bill 
to designate Rocky Flats as a National Wildlife Refuge once that former 
nuclear-weapons site in Colorado is cleaned up and closed.
  This bill, the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge Act of 2001, is 
essentially identical to one I introduced last year on which action was 
not completed before the end of the 106th Congress.
  It will convert Rocky Flats into a National Wildlife Refuge, but only 
AFTER the site has been cleaned up and closed and a final Onsite Record 
of Decision has been submitted by EPA under the Superfund rules. And it 
includes specific provisions to make sure that the bill will not result 
in a less thorough cleanup.
  The bill has been developed through a process of collaboration with 
Senator Wayne Allard, who is introducing corresponding legislation in 
the Senate, and is cosponsored by Representatives DeGette, Tancredo, 
Schaffer, and Hefley.
  In shaping this legislation, Senator Allard and I have worked closely 
with local communities, State and Federal agencies, and interested 
members of the public. We received a great deal of very helpful input, 
including many detailed reactions to and comments on related 
legislation that I introduced in 1999 and discussion drafts that 
Senator Allard and I circulated earlier last year.
  Both Senator Allard and I recognize that introduction of legislation 
is only the initial step in the formal legislative process. We welcome 
and will consider any further comments that anyone may have regarding 
the bills we are introducing today. However, we believe that these 
bills address the points raised by the many parties in Colorado who are 
interested in this important matter.

[[Page E256]]

  Here is a brief outline of the main provisions of the bills Senator 
Allard and I are introducing today, and the few points on which it 
differs from the earlier version of last year:
  Here's what the bill would do, with changes from last year's bill 
noted in italics:
  Maintain federal ownership of the property
  Preserve the Lindsay Ranch Homestead facilities
  Prohibit annexation of the site by any local government
  Prohibit through roads
  Allows up to 300 feet of land along Indiana Street to be used in the 
future for transportation improvements (conditional on support of local 
communities, conformance with DRCOG's Regional Transportation Plan, and 
minimization of any adverse impacts to the refuge)
  Require DOE to continue to cleanup and close the site
  Continue the federal government's long-term obligation for cleanup
  Require the DOE and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop an 
agreement document on how the land and natural resources will be 
managed during cleanup
  Requires the DOE to retain ownership of any long-term cleanup and 
pollution control facility (with consultation with federal and state 
agencies)
  Require DOE to cleanup the site under the levels established by the 
regulators, the public and interested state and federal agencies based 
on science, law and agreements reached with the public on appropriate 
cleanup levels (directs that the National Wildlife Refuge cannot be 
used to affect the level of cleanup)
  Direct that the refuge's management will be consistent with refuge-
system laws, while allowing wildlife-dependent public use where 
appropriate and consistent with wildlife protection
  Create a public involvement process to advise the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service on how the refuge should be managed and to address 
other issues such as use of the site for wind power research, perimeter 
fencing, and a visitor center
  Protect existing property rights, such as existing mineral rights, 
water rights and rights-of way for utilities--subject to reasonable 
conditions to protect cleanup actions and refuge resources
  Require the DOE to attempt to purchase mineral rights at Rocky Flats
  Allow the owners of any water-related easements on the site to do any 
needed surveys.
  Authorize the creation of a Rocky Flats Museum to commemorate the 
work done at this site in helping to win the cold war and its 
challenging cleanup legacy
  Require DOE and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to identify 
funding needs
  The bill will not:
  Affect ongoing cleanup activities
  Allow for the reduction of the extent of cleanup based on the 
creation of a refuge
  Reduce the levels of funds allocated for cleanup work (cleanup and 
closure are to remain priorities)
  Transfer any existing land from the site for other purposes (except 
for the possibility of some land along the eastern boundary for 
transportation improvements along Indiana Street, possible leasing on 
the site for wind power research, and utility rights-of-way)
  Direct that a practice shooting range now on site remain when the 
site is converted to a wildlife refuge
  Let me take a moment to address a few of the more important issues 
that were raised by the local communities and other parties and how 
they are addressed in this bill.
  First, transportation issues. Rocky Flats is located in the midst of 
a growing area of the Denver metropolitan region. As this area 
continues to grow, pressure is being put on the existing transportation 
facilities just outside the boarders of the site. In addition, the 
Denver-metropolitan region has been constructing a beltway around the 
city. The last segment of this beltway yet to be completed or approved 
for construction is to be in the northwest section of Denver, the same 
general areas where Rocky Flats is located. The communities that 
surround the site have been considering transportation improvements in 
this area for a number of years-including the potential completion of 
the beltway, However, we are willing to continue to listen and to work 
with the local governments and the public on this issue.
  So, one of the questions on which Senator Allard and I sought 
comments was whether our bills should allow some use of Rocky Flats 
land to assist in addressing the transportation needs and future 
demands. We asked for and received the views of the public and the 
local communities. That input, along with the recent decision by the 
local communities to forego for now the construction of the beltway in 
the northwest region of Denver, overwhelmingly indicated that the bill 
should allow for possible availability of some land along Indiana 
Street along the eastern
  Second, the Rocky Flats Cold War Museum. This section of the bill 
authorizes the establishment of a museum to commemorate the cold-war 
history of the work done at Rocky Flats. Rocky Flats has been a major 
facility of interest to the Denver area and the communities that 
surround it. Even though this facility will be cleaned up and closed 
down, we should not forget the hard work done here, what role it played 
in our national security and the mixed record of its economic, 
environmental and social impacts. The city of Arvada has been 
particularly interested in this idea, and took the lead in proposing 
inclusion of such a provision in the bill. However, a number of other 
communities have expressed interest in also being considered as a 
possible site for the museum. Accordingly, the bills being introduced 
today provide that Arvada will be the location for the museum unless 
the Secretary of Energy, after consultation with relevant communities, 
decides to select a different location after consideration of all 
appropriate factors such as cost, potential visitorship, and proximity 
to the Rocky Flats site.
  Third, private property rights. Most of the land at Rocky Flats is 
owned by the federal government, but within its boundaries there are a 
number of pre-existing private property rights, including mineral 
rights, water rights, and utility rights-of-way. In response to 
comments from many of their owners, the bills acknowledge the existence 
of these rights, preserve the rights of their owners, including rights 
of access, and allow the Secretaries of Energy and Interior to address 
access issues to continue necessary activities related to cleanup and 
closure of the site and proper management of its resources.
  With regard to water rights, the bills protect existing easements and 
allow water rights holders access to perfect and maintain their rights. 
With regard to mineral rights, the bills urge the Secretaries of Energy 
and Interior to seek to acquire these rights from existing owners--but 
ensure that no funds from cleanup and closure can be used to accomplish 
this goal. Finally, with regard to power lines and the proposal to 
extend a line from a high-tension line that currently crosses the site, 
the bills preserve the existing rights-of-way for these lines and 
allows the construction of one power line from an existing line to 
serve the growing region northeast of Rocky Flats.
  Fourth, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) National 
Wind Technology Center. This research facility, which is located 
northwest of the site, has been conducting important research on wind 
energy technology. As many in the region know, this area of the Front 
Range is subjected to strong winds that spill out over the mountains 
and onto the plains. This creates ideal wind conditions to test new 
wind power turbines. I support this research and believe that the work 
done at this facility can help us be more energy secure as we find ways 
to make wind power more productive and economical. The bills we are 
introducing today preserve this facility. It is outside the boundaries 
of the new wildlife refuge that the bill would create and thus would be 
allowed to continue at its present location. In addition, NREL has been 
considering expanding this facility onto the open lands of Rocky Flats. 
The bill allows NREL to pursue this proposal through the public 
involvement process.
  Fifth, the bill does not include language to retain the existing 
shooting range on the site. This range--constructed by the DOE to train 
the site's security forces--has been used for local law enforcement 
training, and some have suggested that the bill should require it to 
remain available. However, under current cleanup plans the range is to 
be eliminated, and we are aware that both the public and local 
governments have concerns about the desirability of having such a range 
in a wildlife refuge. So, given the fact that the local governments are 
willing to work to locate an alternative facility, we have not included 
language in the bill to require that it remain.
  Finally, cleanup levels. As this legislation has been developed, some 
concerns have been expressed that the establishment of Rocky Flats as a 
wildlife refuge could result in a less extensive or thorough cleanup of 
contamination that has resulted from its prior mission. Of course, that 
was not the intention of the bill I introduced in 1999 and it is 
definitely not the intention of the bills being introduced today. The 
language in these bills has been drafted to ensure that the cleanup is 
based on sound science, compliance with federal and state environmental 
laws and regulations, and public acceptability. The bills now tie the 
cleanup levels to the levels that will be established in the Rocky 
Flats Cleanup Agreement (RFCA) for soil, water and other media 
following a public process to review and reconsider the cleanup levels 
in the RFCA. In this way, the public will be involved in establishing 
cleanup levels and the Secretary of Energy will be required to conduct 
a thorough cleanup based on that input. In addition, the bills require 
that the establishment of the site as a

[[Page E257]]

wildlife refuge cannot be used to affect the cleanup levels--removing 
any possibility of arriving at a lesser cleanup due to this ultimate 
land use.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to express my thanks to Senator Allard for his 
outstanding cooperation in drafting this important legislation. I am 
very appreciative of his contributions and look forward to continuing 
to work closely with him and the other members of the Colorado 
delegation in both the House and Senate to achieve enactment of this 
legislation.
  In the past, Rocky Flats has been off-limits to development because 
it was a weapons plant. That era is over--and its legacy at Rocky Flats 
has been very mixed, to say the least. But it has left us with the 
opportunity to protect and maintain the outstanding natural, cultural, 
and open-space resources and value of this key part of Colorado's Front 
Range area. This bill would accomplish that end, would provide for 
appropriate future management of the lands, and would benefit not just 
the immediate area but all of Colorado and the nation as well.

                          ____________________