[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 43 (Wednesday, April 13, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E631-E632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       INTRODUCTION OF THE AQUATIC INVASIVE SPECIES RESEARCH ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. VERNON J. EHLERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 13, 2005

  Mr. EHLERS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce today a bill that 
is a critical component in our efforts to combat aquatic invasive 
species--the Aquatic Invasive Species Research Act. This legislation is 
similar to legislation that was reported out of the House Science 
Committee in the 108th Congress. It creates a comprehensive research 
program that supports federal, state and local efforts to prevent 
invasive species from ever entering our waterways, as well as 
detection, control and eradication efforts once they are here. It 
complements a bill introduced today by Mr. Gilchrest in the House and 
Senators Collins and Levin in the Senate to reauthorize the National 
Invasive Species Act. This legislation is a critical component in our 
battle against these harmful and extremely damaging pests.
  In undertaking this effort, I have found that many people wonder--
``What is an invasive species? Why it is so crucial to keep them out of 
United States?'' It is important that we understand these questions so 
that we can appreciate the scope of the threat that invasive species 
pose to our economy and environment.
  The introduction of non-native species is not new to the United 
States. People have brought non-native plants and animals into the 
United States, both intentionally and unintentionally, for a variety of 
reasons, since the New World was discovered. Some examples include the 
introduction of nutria (which is a rodent similar to a muskrat) by 
trappers to bolster the domestic fur industry, and the introduction of 
the purple loosestrife plant to add rich color to gardens. Both nutria 
and purple loosestrife are now serious threats to wetlands. Non-native 
species may also be introduced unintentionally, such as through species 
hitching rides in ships, crates, planes, or soil coming into the United 
States. For example, zebra mussels, first discovered in Lake St. Clair 
near Detroit in the late 1980s, came into the Great Lakes through 
ballast water from ships.
  Not all species brought into the country are harmful to local 
economies, people and/or the environment. In fact, most non-native 
species do not survive because the environment does not meet their 
biological needs. In many cases, however, the new species will find 
favorable conditions (such as a lack of natural enemies or an 
environment that fosters propagation) that allow it to survive and 
thrive in a new ecosystem.
  Only a small fraction of these non-native species become an 
``invasive species''--defined as a species that is both non-native to 
the ecosystem and whose introduction causes or may cause economic or 
environmental harm or harm to human health. However, this small 
fraction can cause enormous damage, both to our economy and our 
environment.
  The economic damage includes the cost of control, damage to property 
values, health costs and other factors. Just one species can cost 
government and private citizens billions of dollars. For example, zebra 
mussels have cost the various entities in the Great Lakes basin an 
estimated $3 billion during the past 10 years for cleaning water intake 
pipes, purchasing filtration equipment, and so forth. Sea lamprey 
control measures in the Great Lakes cost approximately $10 million to 
$15 million annually; and, on top of these expenses, there is the cost 
of lost fisheries due to this invader. In fact, invasive species now 
are second only to habitat loss as threats to endangered species.

  Given the enormous economic and environmental impacts these invaders 
cause, two clear goals emerge: First, we need to focus more resources 
and energy into dealing with this problem at all levels of government; 
second, our best strategy for dealing with invasive species is to focus 
these resources to prevent them from ever entering the United States. 
Spending millions of dollars to prevent species introductions will save 
billions of dollars in control, eradication and restoration efforts 
once the species become established. In fact, one theme is central to 
both Mr. Gilchrest's bill and this legislation. It is an old adage, but 
one worth following--``An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of 
cure.''
  To successfully carry out this strategy, we need careful, concerted 
management of this problem, supported by research at every step. For 
example, we know that we must do more to regulate the pathways by which 
these invaders enter the United States (ships, aquaculture, etc.), 
which is an important component of Mr. Gilchrest's legislation. 
However, research must inform us as to which of these pathways pose the 
greatest threat and which techniques used to manage each pathway are 
effective. This legislation would help develop this understanding 
through the ecological and pathway surveys conducted under the bill. In 
fact, research underlies every management decision aimed at detecting, 
preventing, controlling and eradicating invasive species; educating 
citizens and stakeholders; and ensuring that resources are optimally 
deployed to increase the effectiveness of government programs. These 
items are also reflected in the legislation, which I will now describe 
in more detail.
  The bill is divided into six main parts. The first three parts 
outline an ecological and pathway research program, combining surveys 
and experimentation, to be established by the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, the Smithsonian Environmental Research 
Center and the United States Geological Survey. This program is focused 
on understanding what invasive species are present in our waterways, 
which pathways they use to enter our waterways, how they establish 
themselves once they are here and whether or not invasions are getting 
better or worse based on decisions to regulate pathways. In carrying 
out this program, the three principal agencies will develop 
standardized protocols for carrying out the ecological and pathway 
surveys that are called for under the legislation. In addition, they 
will coordinate their efforts to establish longterm surveys sites so we 
have strong baseline information. This program also includes an 
important grant program so that academic researchers and state agencies 
can carry out the surveys at diverse sites distributed geographically 
around the country. This will give federal, state and local managers a 
more holistic view of the rates and patterns of invasions of aquatic 
invasive species into the United States. Lastly, the principal agencies 
will coordinate their efforts and pull all of this information together 
and analyze it to help determine whether or not decisions to manage 
these pathways are effective. This will inform policymakers as to which 
pathways pose the greatest threat and whether or not they need to 
change the way these pathways are managed.
  The fourth part of the bill contains two programs to develop, 
demonstrate and verify technologies to prevent, control and eradicate 
invasive species. The first is an Environmental Protection Agency grant 
program focused on developing, demonstrating and verifying 
environmentally sound technologies to control and eradicate aquatic 
invasive species. This research program will give federal, state and 
local managers more tools to combat invasive

[[Page E632]]

species that are also environmentally sound. The second is expansion 
both in terms of scope and funding of a National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration and Fish and Wildlife Service program geared 
toward demonstrating technologies that prevent invasive species from 
being introduced by ships. This is the federal government's only 
program that is focused solely on helping develop viable technologies 
to treat ballast water. It has been woefully underfunded in the past 
and deserves more attention.
  The fifth part of the bill focuses on setting up research to directly 
support the Coast Guard's efforts to set standards for the treatment of 
ships with respect to preventing them from introducing invasive 
species. Ships are a major pathway by which invasive species are 
unintentionally introduced; the ballast water discharged by ships is of 
particular concern. One of the key issues that has hampered efforts to 
deal with the threats that ships pose is the lack of standards for how 
ballast water must be treated when it is discharged. The Coast Guard 
has had a very difficult time developing these standards since the 
underlying law that support their efforts (the National Invasive 
Species Act) did not contain a research component to support their 
work. This legislation provides that missing piece.
  Finally, the sixth and final part supports our ability to identify 
invaders once they arrive. Over the past couple of decades, the number 
of scientists working in systematics and taxonomy, expertise that is 
fundamental to identifying species, has decreased steadily. In order to 
address this problem, the legislation sets up a National Science 
Foundation program to give grants for academic research in systematics 
and taxonomy with the goal of maintaining U.S. expertise in these 
disciplines.
  Taken together, both my bill and Mr. Gilchrest's bill represent an 
important step forward in our efforts to prevent invasive species from 
ever crossing our borders and combat them once they are arrive. New 
invaders are arriving in the United States each day, bringing with them 
even more burden on taxpayers and the environment. We simply cannot 
afford to wait any longer to deal with this problem, and so I urge all 
of my colleagues to support this legislation.

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