[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 56 (Tuesday, May 3, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H2788-H2789]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PROPOSED INDIAN GAMBLING CASINO IN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE NATIONAL SCENIC 
                             AREA IN OREGON

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Wu) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. WU. Mr. Speaker, tonight I rise to express my deepest concern 
about a proposed Indian gambling casino in the Columbia River Gorge 
National Scenic Area in Oregon.
  On April 6, 2005, Oregon Governor, Ted Kulongoski and the 
Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs signed a Tribal-State compact. 
The compact would allow a off-reservation Indian gambling casino in the 
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. The Columbia River Gorge is 
the crown jewel of Oregon's many natural wonders, a spectacular and 
unique sea-level cut through the Cascade Mountain Range. It is 80 miles 
long and up to 4,000 feet deep. The Columbia River flows between the 
Gorge's north walls in Washington State and its south walls in Oregon. 
It is a natural wonder and a National Scenic Area.
  The proposed 500,000 square foot gambling casino would dramatically 
alter the Columbia River Gorge and have a significant negative effect 
on the environment by increasing traffic, congestion, and air 
pollution. Specifically, the proposed casino would draw an estimated 3 
million visitors per year for non-Gorge related reasons, resulting in 
perhaps a million additional vehicle trips per year. This increased 
traffic would exacerbate existing air pollution problems in the 
Columbia River Gorge. State and Federal agencies have already 
determined that air quality in

[[Page H2789]]

the Columbia River Gorge is significantly degraded and that visibility 
is impaired 95 percent of the time in this National Scenic Area.
  Also, according to Federal sources, this area suffers acid rain as 
severe as what falls in industrial cities such as Washington, D.C., 
Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and New York City. It is crucial that this 
proposal be thoroughly vetted to take into account the environmental 
impact on the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, its habitat, 
and the surrounding communities. I note that there are six endangered 
or threatened species in the Gorge, and over 40 sensitive species in 
the Columbia River Gorge.
  Placing a casino in the Columbia River Gorge has been presented as a 
choice between Hood River and Cascade Locks, two communities on the 
Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge. I emphatically reject this 
Hobson's choice. The Hood River casino site is a red herring, neither 
physically buildable nor legally available for tribal gambling 
purposes. The argument that unless a casino is permitted in Cascade 
Locks, it would inevitably be built in Hood River is a smoke screen 
used to hide other appropriate non-Columbia River Gorge sites.
  Also, allowing this casino in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge, 
on land far removed from the Tribe's existing reservation, would set a 
precedent encouraging other Oregon tribes to demand off-reservation 
casinos closer to the lucrative Portland market. Allowing for an off-
reservation casino in this situation also could set an adverse 
precedent at the national level.
  Until now, Oregon's policy, set by former Governor John Kitzhaber, 
has been to limit each tribe to one casino on reservation land held in 
trust. The Kitzhaber policy has been stable over the years and has 
prevented an arms race to get closer to the lucrative Portland metro 
market. Breaking the Kitzhaber policy would inevitably lead to more 
off-reservation casinos throughout Oregon and potentially also in 
neighboring States. Indeed, once this is allowed, there is no logical 
stopping point. All tribes would have their interests affected 
adversely both by an arms race to the Portland metro area and by a 
potential general public backlash against all Indian gaming.
  This is more than a mere compact to govern gambling. The compact is a 
blueprint for the development of a specific large-scale commercial 
casino complex within one of Oregon's most scenic and ecologically 
sensitive areas. This compact should be disapproved so that we can 
protect the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, limit off-
reservation Indian casino proliferation, protect the long-term 
interests of all federally recognized tribes in Oregon, and act in the 
best interests of the surrounding communities, ranging from Hood River 
to Corbett to Portland to Beaverton.
  The earliest Oregon pioneers, Indian and white alike, came down the 
Columbia River Gorge to find an Eden of the west. They traveled through 
the Gorge, a marvel then and a marvel today, to seek new hope. We 
betray their hopes and dreams if we despoil the crown jewel of Oregon's 
natural heritage in order to maximize short-term gambling projects.

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