[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 53 (Thursday, April 22, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E638]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               PRESERVING ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE LAND

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                         HON. MARK STEVEN KIRK

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 22, 2004

  Mr. KIRK. Mr. Speaker, today I introduced legislation authorizing the 
Secretary of the Navy to transfer ownership of environmentally 
sensitive land at the former Fort Sheridan, Illinois, to a nonprofit 
organization whose mission is to preserve the environment. This bill 
will preserve some of the last remaining pristine wilderness along the 
lakeshore north of Chicago for generations to come.
  The bluffs, ravines, and beachfront at Fort Sheridan are a treasure 
that deserves to be protected. Preserving this land as a park will 
benefit not only the people of the surrounding communities, but the 
hundreds of military families who make their home at the Fort. The 
Secretary of the Navy, Gordon England, is committed to making the Navy 
a good steward of the environment and he understands the 
responsibilities associated with control of large parcels of 
government-owned land. This bill not only will ensure the preservation 
of the land, it also relieves the Navy of the responsibility for 
maintaining property that has no military value.
  As urban sprawl and development pushes outward from our cities, our 
military bases are quickly becoming some of the last wide open, wild 
spaces. This encroachment pushes countless species onto these bases, 
making it even more important to conserve these critical ecosystems. I 
will continue working to find practical ways to protect and preserve 
the environment and critical habitats in the Great Lakes.

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