[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 136 (Thursday, October 11, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S10638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO FRAN FLANIGAN

 Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and 
honor an extraordinary Marylander and steward of the Chesapeake Bay, 
Fran Flanigan. Fran is stepping down from a long and distinguished 
career as executive director of the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay and 
I want to express my personal congratulations and thanks for her 
outstanding and dedicated service.
  When the history of the Chesapeake Bay restoration effort is finally 
written there are many people who will be recognized for the role they 
played in helping to ``Save the Bay.'' But Fran's hard work and 
creativity over the past three decades will distinguish her as one of 
the true leaders in this important endeavor. Fran has been a determined 
advocate for the Chesapeake Bay from virtually the inception of the Bay 
program. In December 1983, she organized a 3-day conference which 
brought together the Governors of Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania, 
the EPA Administrator, members of the State legislatures and many other 
individuals and organization. That conference resulted in the signing 
of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement which formally bound the Federal and 
State governments to work together to restore the Bay and effectively 
initiated the cooperative Chesapeake Bay Program.
  I became acquainted with Fran during that historic summit and have 
had the opportunity to work closely with her and her non-profit 
organization, the Citizens Program for the Chesapeake Bay, later the 
Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, for many years. I can personally 
attest to the tremendous energy and creativity which she consistently 
brought to her work. Fran has an amazing ability to pull people 
together and has been called upon time and time again to convene 
stakeholder roundtables on key issues and expand public involvement. 
Whether the subject was agriculture, toxic pollution or land use, Fran 
would try to find common ground and a way to ensure that different 
States and interest groups moved forward together for the betterment of 
the Chesapeake Bay.
  Fran Flanigan and Alliance have been very forward thinking and helped 
move the Bay cleanup program upstream into the rivers that flow into 
the Chesapeake. She reoriented the Alliance to work at a more local 
level and promote local restoration activities, all in an effort to 
better acquaint the public with the resources they were working to 
protect and restore. She knew that public participation in the efforts 
to clean up the Bay were essential and the key to keeping the Bay 
cleanup effort on course and worked hard to keep the public informed 
about key Chesapeake issues through the Alliance's outstanding white 
papers, fact sheets, newsletters and the Bay Journal. She also helped 
organize everything from small watershed groups to huge public outreach 
efforts such as those needed before the signing of the 1987 and 2000 
Bay Agreements.
  Fran has been there on the front line from the very start of the Bay 
program and, even in retirement, I know will continue to be involved in 
the Bay efforts. Her dedication and efforts over the years have earned 
her the respect and admiration of everyone with whom she has worked. 
She has been instrumental in bringing to so many people an enjoyment 
and sense of ownership of the Chesapeake Bay. I join with her many 
colleagues and friends in extending my best wishes and thanks for her 
leadership and commitment.

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