[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 3 (Friday, January 25, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S136-S138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. McCONNELL:
  S. 1898. A bill to establish the Green River National Wildlife Refuge 
in the State of Kentucky; to the Committee on Environment and Public 
Works.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Green 
River National Wildlife Refuge Act of 2002. Seven years ago Kentucky 
was the only State in the Nation that did not have its own national 
wildlife refuge. I was proud to remedy this problem by helping enact 
legislation to establish the Clarks River National Wildlife Refuge in 
Marshall County, KY. Nearly half of the targeted 18,000 acres have been 
acquired for this refuge, all from willing sellers. And this spring, 
the refuge headquarters building will be completed.

[[Page S137]]

  Given the success and progress of the Clarks River refuge, I am proud 
to partner with the efforts of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service to establish Kentucky's second national wildlife refuge on 
approximately 23,000 acres in Henderson County along the confluence of 
the Green River and the Ohio River. This targeted refuge area will 
provide a diverse array of conservation, recreation, and environmental 
education opportunities for everyone from tourists to wildlife 
enthusiasts to local school groups.
  The proposed refuge site in the Green River bottoms area was once 
part of a large bottomland hardwood forest. Although this wetland area 
has largely been replaced by agriculture, it serves as a popular spot 
for a variety of waterfowl and migratory birds, especially when 
desirable water levels occur. In fact, on February 1, 1999, more than 
10,000 ducks and 8,000 geese were recorded as visitors to the Green 
River area. The site also is home to several endangered or threatened 
species, such as the fanshell, Indiana bat maternity colonies, the 
copperbelly snake, and a number of different mussels. Establishing a 
refuge in this area offers a valuable opportunity to restore hardwood 
forest to the Green River bottoms area, which will, in turn, help 
provide a safe and fruitful habitat for migratory birds and wildlife 
and help stop the erosion that threatens to change the course of the 
Ohio River.
  Outdoor recreationalists, including hunters, fishermen, birdwatchers, 
nature photographers, will enjoy many benefits from the protection and 
restoration of a diverse and thriving wildlife habitat. Indeed, the 
proposed refuge area already hosts a large population of white-tailed 
deer, gray squirrel, catfish, and carp, which will provide exceptional 
hunting and fishing opportunities.
  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service already has taken significant 
steps to make the Green River National Wildlife Refuge a reality. I 
think it is important, however, to ensure that any land acquired for 
this refuge is obtained only from willing sellers, just as is the case 
with Clarks River National Wildlife Refuge. Although I understand that 
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has no plans to condemn private 
property for the refuge, I believe that the landowners in Henderson 
County deserve a legislative guarantee to assure that the Refuge will 
not infringe upon their rights as private property owners. My 
legislation would provide that guarantee.
  I look forward to partnering with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
to bring this project to fruition, and I ask unanimous consent that a 
copy of this bill, be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1898

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Green River National 
     Wildlife Refuge Act of 2002''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) the Green River bottoms area, Kentucky, was once part 
     of a large bottomland hardwood forest;
       (2) most of the bottoms area has been converted to 
     agricultural use through--
       (A) draining of wetland;
       (B) altering of interior drainage systems; and
       (C) clearing of bottomland hardwood forest;
       (3) as of the date of enactment of this Act, the bottoms 
     area is predominantly ridge and swale farmland, with river-
     scar oxbows, several sloughs, wet depression areas, and a 
     small quantity of bottomland hardwood forest;
       (4) approximately 1,200 acres of bottomland hardwood forest 
     remain, consisting mostly of cypress, willow, hackberry, 
     silver maple, ash, and buttonbush;
       (5) many of the interior drainage systems on the land offer 
     excellent opportunities to restore, with minor modifications, 
     the historical hydrology, wetland, and bottomland hardwood 
     forest of the bottoms area to high-quality wildlife habitats;
       (6) in the bottoms area, waterfowl occur in large numbers 
     when sufficient water levels occur, primarily when flood 
     conditions from the Ohio River and the Green River negate the 
     extensive drainages and alterations made by man;
       (7) the wooded and shrub tracts of the bottoms area are 
     used by many species of nongame neotropical migratory birds;
       (8) migratory shorebirds use the bottoms area during spring 
     migrations;
       (9) wading birds such as snipe, great blue heron, green 
     heron, common egret, and great egret frequent the bottoms 
     area;
       (10) bald eagles and myriad other raptors frequent the 
     bottoms area;
       (11) several species listed as endangered or threatened 
     species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
     1531 et seq.) have been found near the bottoms area, 
     including Indiana bat maternity colonies, fanshell, pink 
     mucket pearly mussel, and fat pocketbook;
       (12) several species of mussel listed as endangered or 
     threatened species under that Act historically occurred near 
     the bottoms area, including purple cat's paw pearly mussel, 
     tubercled-blossom pearly mussel, ring pink, and white 
     wartyback pearly mussel;
       (13) the copperbelly water snake, covered by the 
     Copperbelly Water Snake Conservation Plan, is found in the 
     wetland complex and buttonbush shrub in the Scuffletown area;
       (14) significant populations of resident game species, 
     including white-tailed deer, swamp rabbit, cottontail rabbit, 
     gray squirrel, mink, muskrat, beaver, fox, and coyote, occur 
     in the bottoms area;
       (15) the Ohio River and the Green River are important 
     habitat for big river species such as paddlefish, sturgeon, 
     catfish, carp, buffalo, and gar;
       (16) conservation, enhancement, and ecological restoration 
     of the bottoms area through inclusion in the National 
     Wildlife Refuge System would help meet the habitat 
     conservation goals of--
       (A) the North American Waterfowl Management Plan;
       (B) the Lower Mississippi Joint Venture;
       (C) the Interior Low Plateaus Bird Conservation Plan; and
       (D) the Copperbelly Water Snake Conservation Plan;
       (17) the valuable complex of wetland habitats comprising 
     the bottoms area, with its many forms of wildlife, has 
     extremely high recreational value for hunters, anglers, 
     birdwatchers, nature photographers, and others; and
       (18) the Green River bottoms area is deserving of inclusion 
     in the National Wildlife Refuge System.

     SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

       The purpose of this Act is to establish the Green River 
     National Wildlife Refuge in the Green River bottoms area, 
     Henderson County, Kentucky, to provide--
       (1) habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl;
       (2) habitat for nongame land birds;
       (3) habitats for a natural diversity of fish and wildlife;
       (4) nesting habitat for wood ducks and other locally 
     nesting migratory waterfowl;
       (5) high-quality hunting and sportfishing opportunities; 
     and
       (6) opportunities for environmental education, 
     interpretation, and wildlife-oriented recreation.

     SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Refuge.--The term ``Refuge'' means the Green River 
     National Wildlife Refuge established under section 5.
       (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.

     SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT.

       (a) Establishment.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish the Green 
     River National Wildlife Refuge, consisting of approximately 
     23,000 acres of Federal land, water, and interests in land or 
     water within the boundaries depicted on the map entitled 
     ``Green River National Wildlife Refuge'', dated September 10, 
     2001.
       (2) Boundary revisions.--The Secretary shall make such 
     minor revisions of the boundaries of the Refuge as are 
     appropriate to carry out the purposes of the Refuge or to 
     facilitate the acquisition of land, water, and interests in 
     land or water within the Refuge.
       (3) Availability of map.--The map referred to in paragraph 
     (1) shall be available for inspection in appropriate offices 
     of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
       (b) Effective Date.--The establishment of the Refuge shall 
     take effect on the date on which the Secretary publishes, in 
     the Federal Register and publications of local circulation in 
     the vicinity of the Refuge, a notice that sufficient property 
     has been acquired by the United States within the Refuge to 
     constitute an area that can be efficiently managed as a 
     national wildlife refuge.

     SEC. 6. ACQUISITION OF LAND, WATER, AND INTERESTS IN LAND OR 
                   WATER.

       (a) In General.--Subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, the Secretary may obtain by purchase from 
     willing sellers, donation, or exchange up to 23,000 acres of 
     land and water, or interests in land or water, within the 
     boundaries of the Refuge described in section 5(a)(1).
       (b) Inclusion in Refuge.--Any land, water, or interest 
     acquired by the Secretary under this section shall be part of 
     the Refuge.

     SEC. 7. ADMINISTRATION.

       In administering the Refuge, the Secretary shall--
       (1) conserve, enhance, and restore the native aquatic and 
     terrestrial community characteristics of the Green River 
     (including associated fish, wildlife, and plant species);
       (2) conserve, enhance, and restore habitat to maintain and 
     assist in the recovery of species of animals and plants that 
     are listed as endangered species or threatened species under 
     the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);
       (3) in providing opportunities for compatible fish- and 
     wildlife-oriented recreation,

[[Page S138]]

     ensure that hunting, fishing, wildlife observation and 
     photography, and environmental education and interpretation 
     are the priority general public uses of the Refuge, in 
     accordance with paragraphs (3) and (4) of section 4(a) of the 
     National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 
     (16 U.S.C. 668dd(a)); and
       (4) encourage the use of volunteers and facilitate 
     partnerships among the United States Fish and Wildlife 
     Service, local communities, conservation organizations, and 
     other non-Federal entities to promote--
       (A) public awareness of the resources of the Refuge and the 
     National Wildlife Refuge System; and
       (B) public participation in the conservation of those 
     resources.

     SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are 
     necessary for--
       (1) the acquisition of land and water within the boundaries 
     of the Refuge; and
       (2) the development, operation, and maintenance of the 
     Refuge.

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