[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 3, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1674]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




IN HONOR OF THE FRIENDS OF THE PATUXENT RESEARCH REFUGE'S RECEIPT OF A 
               2003 CHESAPEAKE BAY GATEWAYS NETWORK GRANT

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                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 3, 2003

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Friends of the 
Patuxent Research Refuge. Friends of the Patuxent Research Refuge 
received a 2003 Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network Grant to construct a 
pilot demonstration Schoolyard Habitat site at Patuxent Research 
Refuge's National Wildlife Visitor Center.
  The Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, which includes more than 120 
museums, state parks, wildlife refuges and other sites in five States 
and the District of Columbia, was created to enhance the experience of 
visitors to the Chesapeake Bay and its many roads, rivers and trails. 
Authorized by the Chesapeake Bay Initiative Act of 1998, the Gateways 
Network is coordinated by the National Park Service in partnership with 
the Chesapeake Bay Program.
  During the past four years, Gateways Network Grants have funded new 
maps, improved signs, and expanded trails that have made visits to 
parks, wildlife refuges and water trails even more exciting and 
enjoyable than they had previously been. These grants help enhance the 
public's ability to learn and enjoy the Chesapeake's stories and 
significance, explore its natural and cultural resources, and become 
involved in helping conserve and restore the Bay and its watershed. 
Through these projects and other Gateways Network efforts more and more 
people recognize the Chesapeake as a true national treasure.
  In 2003, the National Park Service is awarding $1,387,309 in grant 
funding, matched by over $2 million in partner contributions. Thirty-
two grants are being made to Gateways throughout the Bay watershed in 
Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The Friends of the 
Patuxent Research Refuge is receiving a grant of $14,457 and $14,795 in 
partner contributions.
  The project proposed by the Friends of the Patuxent Research Refuge 
will serve the dual purpose of improving the habitat quality 
surrounding the National Wildlife Visitor Center and educating the 
community on BayScaping techniques and Schoolyard Habitats. Volunteers 
and visitors will help create the project, involving themselves in a 
direct habitat restoration effort that can stimulate further 
involvement later. Watershed signs, a walking path, an outdoor 
classroom, and an indoor kiosk will be used to interpret the habitat 
site and how it and similar efforts contribute to the Chesapeake Bay's 
health.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with the assistance and vision of organizations 
such as the Friends of the Patuxent Research Refuge that the Chesapeake 
Bay and the entire region has become the treasure that we know it to be 
today. Mr. Speaker, please join me in congratulating the Friends of the 
Patuxent Research Refuge on receiving this grant and wishing them the 
best of luck in completing their project.

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