[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 112 (Monday, September 9, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1527]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             POINT REYES NATIONAL SEASHORE 40TH ANNIVERSARY

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                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 9, 2002

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Point Reyes National 
Seashore on the occasion of its 40th anniversary. On September 13, 
1962, President John F. Kennedy signed into law P.L. 87-657 ``to save 
and preserve, for the purpose of public recreation, benefit, and 
inspiration, a portion of the diminishing seashore of the United States 
that remains undeveloped.''
  Conceived as a park in the 1930s, the hard work of dedicated people 
made Point Reyes National Seashore a reality many years later. Today 
the Seashore, located an hour's drive from the urban San Francisco Bay 
Area, is enjoyed by over 2.5 million visitors annually. It comprises 
over 71,000 acres including estuaries, beaches, coastal grasslands, 
salt marshes, and coniferous forests and contains 45 percent of North 
American avian species and 18 percent of California's plant species. 
The Park is the best site for whale watching on the West Coast with as 
many as 200 migrating whales sited per day. In 1988 Point Reyes 
National Seashore was internationally recognized by the United Nations 
Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for its 
examples of the world's major ecosystem types and named the Central 
California Coast Biosphere Reserve.
  Lying just across the San Andrea Fault from the rest of North 
America, the Point Reyes peninsula is also a geological land in motion 
which has moved over 300 miles in the last 100 million years. Visitors 
to the Park's Earthquake Trail can see the results of this activity 
from near the epicenter of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
  The cultural history of Point Reyes dates back 5,000 years to a time 
when the Coast Miwok Indians inhabited the peninsula. Over 120 Miwok 
archeological sites exist within the park. In 1579 Sir Francis Drake 
was probably the first European in the area, landing on the shores of 
the Bay which bears his name. Lighthouses and lifesaving stations, 
several still available to visitors, were established in the 19th 
century in response to the many shipwrecks in the treacherous waters 
off the coast. In the early 19th century Mexican land grantees 
established ranchos, and today ranching operations continue in the 
Park's pastoral zones.
  Today, under the direction of Superintendent Don Neubacher, the Park 
successfully balances the needs of visitors and ranchers with the 
preservation of ecosystems and historical sites.
  Mr. Speaker, Point Reyes National Seashore ranks among the top twenty 
most-visited National Park service areas in the country and exemplifies 
the Park Service's mission to ``care for special places saved by the 
American people so that all may experience our heritage.''

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