[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 69 (Tuesday, April 29, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E750]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      COPPER SALMON WILDERNESS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. DAVID WU

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 22, 2008

  Mr. WU. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3513, the Copper 
Salmon Wilderness Act. This bill, introduced by my friend, colleague 
and Dean of the Oregon delegation, Mr. DeFazio, would set aside nearly 
13,000 acres in the headwaters of the Elk River on the southern coast 
of Oregon, and designate more than 11 additional miles of the river as 
either wild or scenic under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
  The Copper Salmon area contains one of the Nation's largest remaining 
stands of low-elevation old-growth forest and in the north fork of the 
Elk, one of the healthiest salmon, steelhead, and cutthroat trout runs 
in the continental United States.
  Mr. Speaker, I cannot talk about the health of this great river 
without calling attention to the fact that the Pacific Coast salmon 
fishermen face one of the largest salmon fishery closures ever recorded 
in the United States. It is legislation like this that makes us realize 
the importance of looking into the future and to move in a direction 
that not only protects the fish, but also the local economy by 
providing habitat for more fish to flourish and survive into adulthood.
  Mr. Speaker, it was poor natural resource management that has helped 
to create our recent salmon disasters and this bill offers a chance to 
head in another direction. The Oregon delegation and their friends in 
California and Washington have worked hard, and worked collectively to 
make sure that both salmon and our fishermen are protected.
  I would like to thank you, Mr. Speaker, for your assistance in the 
past for disaster relief funds for our 1,200 salmon fishermen. I ask 
that you keep a watchful eye this season as the salmon fishermen of the 
Pacific face another closed season, another disaster declaration, and 
lost revenue.

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