[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 115 (Thursday, September 12, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8566-S8569]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. JEFFORDS (for himself, Mr. Leahy, Mrs. Clinton, and Mr.
Schumer):
S. 2928. A bill to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and
the Water Resources Development Act of 2000 to modify provisions
relating to the Lake Champlain basin; to the Committee on Environment
and Public Works.
[[Page S8567]]
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, Members of the Senate, I rise on behalf
of myself and Senators Leahy, Clinton, and Schumer to introduce the
Daniel Patrick Moynihan Lake Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002.
This legislation will bring the Lake Champlain Basin Program into the
21st century.
In 1990, along with Senators Leahy, Moynihan, and D'amato, I
introduced the Lake Champlain Special Designation Act which designated
Lake Champlain as a resource of national significance.
The program began as a management conference with a charter of
developing a comprehensive pollution prevention, control, and
restoration plan for Lake Champlain.
The management conference began work immediately after passage of the
Lake Champlain Special Designation Act of 1990 and developed the Plan
entitled, ``Opportunities for Action.''
The conference evolved into today's Lake Champlain Basin Program
which works cooperatively with partners throughout the region to
protect and enhance the environmental integrity and the social and
economic benefits of the Lake Champlain Basin.
A key element of the success of this program is the active
participation of the local partners.
State and local governments, nonprofit entities, and the regional
representatives of the Federal agencies involved in the Basin Program
are the best fuel behind this program's success.
It is their efforts that have made this program an international
model for lake restoration programs.
The program completed its first 5-year update of ``Opportunities for
Action'' in January 2002.
Our legislation authorizes the implementation of this plan through a
partnership between the Basin Program and the Federal Government.
Before I get into the specifics of the legislation, let me take a
minute to describe the Lake Champlain Basin to you.
For those of you who have not visited either the Vermont or the New
York side, I recommend that you take the time to see this magnificent
spot which is the sixth largest freshwater lake in the world, after
only the Great Lakes.
Lake Champlain flows north along the borders of Vermont, New York,
and Canada.
It is 120 miles long and just 12 miles wide at its widest point.
Lake Champlain is home to a diverse array of 81 species of fish, 318
species of birds, 56 species of mammals, 21 species of amphibians and
20 reptile species.
The floor of Lake Champlain boasts some of the best-preserved
submerged cultural heritage resources in North America.
Shipwrecks in the lake reflect virtually every era of human activity
in the Basin.
The Lake Champlain Basin stretches from the Adirondacks to the Green
Mountains and north into Quebec.
It is an area about the size of Massachusetts with 56 percent of the
Basin in Vermont, 37 percent in New York, and 7 percent in Canada.
The Basin not only offers natural beauty, but also plays a key role
in the life of Vermonters, New Yorkers, and Canadians.
It is a recreation mecca in the region with over 7,500 motorboats,
more than 3,000 sailboats, and thousands of swimmers, windsurfers,
kayakers, canoers, and scuba divers visiting Lake Champlain on a
typical summer day.
Recreation generated $3.8 billion in the Basin in 2000. The
population in the Basin has been steadily growing over the last 40
years.
Today, approximately one-third of the Basin's over 600,000 residents
use the lake as a source of drinking water. It is also a key source of
water for agriculture and industry. All of this human activity has
taken a toll on Lake Champlain.
Although it remains a generally healthy lake today, it is plagued by
excess phosphorous loadings, toxics such as mercury, and invasions of
nonnative species such as the zebra mussel and sea lamprey.
We must take action to prevent future degradation.
The Lake Champlain Basin Program issued a revised Plan in January
2002, also entitled ``Opportunities for Action,'' that provides a path
to protect the health of the lake well into the future.
The bill we introduce today, the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Lake
Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002, authorizes the Federal side of the
partnerships required to implement Opportunities for Action.
This legislation authorizes $5 million per year for 5 years for the
Environmental Protection Agency to make grants to implement
Opportunities for Action.
These funds will be coupled with a 25-percent local match as well as
with $6 million per year for 5 years from the Department of the
Interior, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of
Agriculture.
This bill also revises an authorization that Congress passed in the
Water Resources Development Act of 2000 for the Army Corps of Engineers
to provide design and construction assistance of up to $20 million for
implementation of Opportunities for Action to make it more usable for
``Vermont-style'' projects.
These funds will be used to protect and enhance the environmental
integrity and social and economic benefits of the Lake Champlain basin
and to achieve the environmental goals described in the plan,
including: the reduction of phosphorous inputs; the reduction of toxic
contamination; the control of the introduction, spread, and impacts of
nonnative nuisance substances and species; the minimization of risks to
humans from water-related health hazards, and the protection of
natural, recreation, and cultural heritage resources.
I look forward to working with my colleagues in Washington, in New
York, and, most of all, in Vermont to pass this legislation and to
implement this program that is so critical to the long-term health of
Lake Champlain.
Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I join my colleague from Vermont in
supporting this bill that he is introducing today, the Daniel Patrick
Moynihan Lake Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002.
I thank Chairman Jeffords, with whom I have the honor and pleasure of
serving on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, for
working on this legislation, for being devoted to Lake Champlain, and
for giving my distinguished predecessor, Senator Moynihan, the honor of
naming it after him.
Senator Moynihan was in my office on Tuesday. I told him of Senator
Jefford's plans, and he was surprised and delighted. But he certainly
deserves this great honor because, along with Senator Jeffords, he has
been a champion of this natural and cultural resource that our States
share: the Lake Champlain Basin and Champlain Valley.
We are joining with our colleagues--Senator Leahy and Senator
Schumer--in introducing this legislation because we know how
significant this lake is. It is the sixth largest natural freshwater
lake in the United States. Some of us consider it a ``Great Lake.'' It
is home to an array of fish, birds, and other wildlife.
It also has significant historic, social, and economic consequences
for our entire country. What we aim to do with this legislation is to
give the Champlain Valley Basin the kind of support it needs to
continue its recovery.
This is an area that Senator Jeffords and Senator Moynihan paid
particular attention to. They have worked very closely together over
the last many years. And it builds on legislation that Senator Moynihan
played a key role in during the 101st Congress, as well as a plan that
came out of the 1990 legislation entitled ``Opportunities for Action''
that enabled the Lake Champlain Steering Committee to create the new
guiding document on which our legislation, in great measure, draws.
This will provide new and important resources for counties in Vermont
and also counties in New York, including Clinton, Essex, Franklin,
Hamilton, Warren, and Washington Counties.
This is very important environmental legislation, but it is equally
important economic, social, and historic legislation. That is why I am
very proud to sponsor this legislation with my chairman, Senator
Jeffords, and to join him in naming this legislation after our
illustrious and esteemed colleague, Senator Patrick Moynihan.
There is no more fitting tribute to Senator Moynihan than to give him
[[Page S8568]]
the recognition that he is due for the leadership role he played in
bringing to national attention places of great national importance,
such as Lake Champlain.
I thank Senator Jeffords.
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, my colleague, Senator Jeffords, introduced
legislation, the Lake Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002, in honor of
former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. With the forbearance of the
distinguished Senator from Connecticut and the distinguished Senator
from Tennessee, I will only speak for a couple minutes.
I, obviously, strongly support what Senator Jeffords has done and
appreciate his work and the work of the members of his staff.
In Vermont, we are extremely pleased with the success of the Lake
Champlain program to date. With the additional resources in this bill,
we are confident that the problems that Lake Champlain encounters--the
problems of pollution and of other matters--can be addressed.
Lake Champlain is a magnificent lake standing between Vermont and New
York. It is a lake that is enjoyed by people who fish, sail, who are
involved in economic activities, and, of course, it has tremendous
economic and historical value to this Nation, from the time of the
Revolutionary War on.
The basin program shows what happens when two States, Vermont and New
York, and one province, the Province of Quebec, get together and work
on a common watershed and link their people, their governments--local,
State, and Federal--together in almost unprecedented cooperation to
save this great big beautiful lake. It has been a model for watersheds
throughout the Nation.
I am pleased to join in introducing this legislation. I believe it
will ensure that our children and our grandchildren will enjoy this
lake in the same way Senator Jeffords and I did when we were children.
I am very pleased to join with my colleagues from Vermont and New
York as we introduce the Lake Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002 in
honor of former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
I was with Senator Moynihan in 1990 that we were able to enact the
first comprehensive piece of legislation to make Federal resources
available to help our states address the challenges facing Lake
Champlain.
I want to thank Senator Jeffords and his staff for all the work they
have put into this effort. I know that many hours have gone into the
research, discussion and editing to get where we are today.
I also want to thank Senators Clinton and Schumer who are our
valuable New York partners in all things related to Lake Champlain.
Our initial 1990 Lake Champlain legislation was very successful. It
brought together various agencies, interest groups and government
entities to develop a comprehensive pollution prevention and
restoration management plan for the Lake.
Through long hours and a cooperative effort, the Vermonters and New
Yorkers involved came up with a good plan which was signed by Governors
Dean and Pataki in 1996.
While we have several priority action items ranging across a wide
spectrum of Lake related issues, the Big three remain phosphorus
reduction, toxic contaminant prevention and clean-up and management of
aquatic nuisance species.
Our legislative proposal today rightfully moves from an emphasis on
research and planning to one of clean-up implementation and, quite
importantly, monitoring the progress of that clean-up.
We are very pleased with the success of the Lake Champlain Basin
Program to date, and with the additional resources envisioned in this
bill, we are confident that the problems Lake Champlain is encountering
can be addressed successfully.
The Basin Program stands as a fine example of how two States and one
province can work together as a common watershed linking its citizens
and their governments at all levels--local, State and Federal.
Indeed, the Lake Champlain model has been held up many times in
recent years as an example for other watersheds around the world.
We are happy to share our successes, and even our failures, with
conservation initiatives internationally.
I am excited about the prospects of this legislation and I hope the
full Senate will give Vermont and New York its ringing endorsement once
it has received committee review.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be
printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
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 ``Daniel Patrick Moynihan Lake
Champlain Basin Program Act of 2002''.
SEC. 2. LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM.
Title I of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act is
amended by striking section 120 (33 U.S.C. 1270) and
inserting the following:
``SEC. 120. LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Committee.--The term `Committee' means the steering
committee of the program comprised of representatives of
Federal, State, and local governments and other persons, as
specified in the Plan.
``(2) Lake champlain basin.--
``(A) In general.--The term `Lake Champlain basin' means
all water and land resources in the United States in the
drainage basin of Lake Champlain.
``(B) Inclusions.--The term `Lake Champlain basin'
includes--
``(i) Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Warren, and
Washington counties in the State of New York; and
``(ii) Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden,
Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, and
Washington counties in the State of Vermont.
``(3) Plan.--The term `Plan' means the plan entitled
`Opportunities for Action: An Evolving Plan for the Future of
the Lake Champlain Basin', approved by Lake Champlain
Steering Committee on January 30, 2002, that describes the
actions necessary to protect and enhance the environmental
integrity and the social and economic benefits of the Lake
Champlain basin.
``(4) Program.--The term `program' means the Lake Champlain
Basin Program established by subsection (b)(1).
``(b) Establishment.--
``(1) In general.--There is established a program to be
known as the `Lake Champlain Basin Program'.
``(2) Purposes.--The purposes of the program are--
``(A) to protect and enhance the environmental integrity
and social and economic benefits of the Lake Champlain basin;
and
``(B) to achieve the environmental goals described in the
Plan, including--
``(i) the reduction of phosphorous inputs to Lake Champlain
from point sources and nonpoint sources so as to--
``(I) promote a healthy and diverse ecosystem; and
``(II) provide for sustainable human use and enjoyment of
Lake Champlain;
``(ii) the reduction of toxic contamination, such as
contamination by mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls, to
protect public health and the ecosystem of the Lake Champlain
basin;
``(iii) the control of the introduction, spread, and
impacts of nonnative nuisance species to preserve the
integrity of the ecosystem of the Lake Champlain basin;
``(iv) the minimization of risks to humans from water-
related health hazards in the Lake Champlain basin, including
through the protection of sources of drinking water in the
Lake Champlain basin;
``(v) the restoration and maintenance of a healthy and
diverse community of fish and wildlife in the Lake Champlain
basin;
``(vi) the protection and restoration of wetland, streams,
and riparian habitat in the Lake Champlain basin, including
functions and values provided by those areas;
``(vii) the management of Lake Champlain, including
shorelines and tributaries of Lake Champlain, to achieve--
``(I) the protection of natural and cultural resources of
Lake Champlain; and
``(II) the maintenance of recreational uses of Lake
Champlain;
``(viii) the protection of recreation and cultural heritage
resources of the Lake Champlain basin;
``(ix) the continuance of the Lake Champlain long-term
water quality and biological monitoring program; and
``(x) the promotion of healthy and diverse economic
activity and sustainable development principles in the Lake
Champlain basin.
``(c) Implementation.--The Committee, in consultation with
appropriate heads of Federal agencies, shall implement the
program.
``(d) Revision of Plan.--At least once every 5 years, the
Committee shall review and, as necessary, revise the Plan.
``(e) Grants.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the
Administrator may, in consultation with the Committee, make
grants, for the purpose of implementing the management
strategies contained in the Plan, to--
``(A) State, interstate, and regional water pollution
control agencies; and
``(B) public or nonprofit agencies, institutions, and
organizations.
[[Page S8569]]
``(2) Cost sharing.--The Federal share of the cost of any
activity carried out using funds from a grant provided under
this subsection shall not exceed 75 percent.
``(3) Additional requirements.--The Administrator may
establish such additional requirements for the administration
of grants provided under this subsection as the Administrator
determines to be appropriate.
``(f) Coordination of Federal Programs.--
``(1) Agriculture.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall
support the implementation of the program by providing
financial and technical assistance relating to best
management practices for controlling nonpoint source
pollution, particularly with respect to preventing pollution
from agricultural activities.
``(2) Interior.--
``(A) Geological survey.--The Secretary of the Interior,
acting through the United States Geological Survey, shall
support the implementation of the program by providing
financial, scientific, and technical assistance and
applicable watershed research, such as--
``(i) stream flow monitoring;
``(ii) water quality monitoring;
``(iii) evaluation of effectiveness of best management
practices;
``(iv) research on the transport and final destination of
toxic chemicals in the environment; and
``(v) development of an integrated geographic information
system of the Lake Champlain basin.
``(B) Fish and wildlife.--The Secretary of the Interior,
acting through the Director of the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service and in cooperation with the Committee, shall
support the implementation of the program by--
``(i) supporting the protection and restoration of wetland,
streams, aquatic, and riparian habitat;
``(ii) supporting restoration of interjurisdictional
fisheries and declining aquatic species in the Lake Champlain
watershed through--
``(I) propagation of fish in hatcheries; and
``(II) continued advancement in fish culture and aquatic
species management technology;
``(iii) supporting the control and management of aquatic
nuisance species that have adverse effects on--
``(I) fisheries; or
``(II) the form, function, or structure of the ecosystem of
the Lake Champlain basin;
``(iv) providing financial and technical assistance in
accordance with the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act (16
U.S.C. 661 et seq.) to private landowners seeking to improve
fish and wildlife habitat, a goal of which is--
``(I) restoration of full function to degraded habitat;
``(II) enhancement of specific habitat functions; or
``(III) establishment of valuable fish and wildlife habitat
that did not previously exist on a particular parcel of real
property; and
``(v) taking other appropriate action to assist in
implementation of the Plan.
``(C) National parks.--The Secretary of the Interior,
acting through the Director of the National Park Service,
shall support the implementation of the program by providing,
through the use of funds in the National Recreation and
Preservation Appropriation account of the National Park
Service, financial and technical assistance for programs
concerning cultural heritage, natural resources, recreational
resources, or other programs consistent with the mission of
the National Park Service that are associated with the Lake
Champlain basin, as identified in the Plan.
``(3) Commerce.--The Secretary of Commerce, acting through
the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, shall support
the implementation of the program by providing financial and
technical assistance, through the national sea grant program
of the Department of Commerce, for--
``(A) research;
``(B) management of fisheries and other aquatic resources;
``(C) related watershed programs; and
``(D) other appropriate action to assist in implementation
of the Plan.
``(g) No Effect on Other Authority.--Nothing in this
section affects the authority of--
``(1) any Federal or State agency; or
``(2) any international entity relating to Lake Champlain
established by an international agreement to which the United
States is a party.
``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $11,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2003 through 2007, of which--
``(1) $5,000,000 shall be made available to the
Administrator;
``(2) $3,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary
of the Interior;
``(3) $1,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary
of Commerce; and
``(4) $2,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary
of Agriculture.''.
SEC. 3. LAKE CHAMPLAIN WATERSHED, VERMONT AND NEW YORK.
Section 542 of the Water Resources Development Act of 2000
(114 Stat. 2671) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``(a)'' and all that follows through ``(A)
the land areas'' and inserting the following:
``(a) Definition of Lake Champlain Watershed.--In this
section, the term `Lake Champlain watershed' means--
``(1) the land areas'';
(B) by striking ``(B)(i) the'' and inserting the following:
``(2)(A) the'';
(C) by striking ``(ii) the'' and inserting the following:
``(B) the'';
(D) in paragraph (2)(A) (as redesignated by subparagraph
(B)), by inserting ``Hamilton,'' after ``Franklin,''; and
(E) in paragraph (2)(B) (as redesignated by subparagraph
(C)), by striking ``clause (i)'' and inserting ``subparagraph
(A)'';
(2) in subsections (b) through (e), by striking ``critical
restoration'' each place it appears and inserting ``ecosystem
restoration'';
(3) in subsection (b)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Critical
Restoration Projects'' and inserting ``Ecosystem Restoration
Program'';
(B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``participate in'' and
inserting ``provide design and construction assistance to
non-Federal interests for''; and
(C) in paragraph (2), by striking ``A'' and inserting
``An'';
(4) in subsection (c)--
(A) by striking ``assistance for a'' and inserting ``design
and construction assistance for an''; and
(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``ecosystem restoration
or'' after ``form of'';
(5) in subsection (d)--
(A) by striking ``(d)'' and all that follows through ``(A)
In general.--A'' and inserting the following:
``(d) Criteria for Eligibility.--
``(1) In general.--An''; and
(B) by striking ``(B) Special'' and inserting the
following:
``(2) Special''; and
(6) in subsection (e)(1)--
(A) by striking ``to a'' and inserting ``to an''; and
(B) by striking ``agreement that shall require the non-
Federal interest'' and inserting the following: ``agreement
that is in accordance with section 221 of the Flood Control
Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 1962d-5b) and under which the non-
Federal interest agrees''.
______