[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 9, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E739]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           IN HONOR OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF FLORENCE LaRIVIERE

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                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 9, 2012

  Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Florence LaRiviere, 
a passionate citizen activist responsible for creating our country's 
first urban national wildlife refuge. Without Florence, it is safe to 
say that thousands of acres of wetlands and salt ponds along the San 
Francisco Bay would have been destroyed and developed. The Don Edwards 
San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge, in my Congressional 
District, is the result of her tireless commitment to preventing urban 
sprawl from taking over unspoiled natural area.
  On May 10th, Florence is being rightly honored for her decades of 
environmental and community service with the National Wetlands Award 
from the Environmental Law Institute of Washington, DC. Although 
Florence is being honored now, at the age of 88, her work to preserve 
the Bay spans seven decades.
  In the 1950's Florence would take her children to enjoy the Bay's 
natural marshes and wetlands. Even then, development was steadily 
encroaching on this fragile ecosystem and threatened its very survival. 
Marshes were being drained and filled and the Bay's health was in 
severe decline. Florence organized other concerned citizens and 
launched a battle to preserve the wetlands and restore the Bay. They 
took their fight to then Representative Don Edwards, who championed 
legislation to create the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in 
1972. She didn't stop there. In the 1980s, she established the Citizens 
Committee to Complete the Refuge and led the fight to expand the refuge 
by 20,000 acres.
  After all these accomplishments, Florence LaRiviere still works to 
preserve and protect California's wetlands. In the last few years, I've 
been honored to work with Florence to restore the Eden Landing salt 
ponds along the Hayward Shoreline. Now, instead of sterile ponds, we 
have a thriving marsh where hundreds of bird species can be seen and 
the public can access the bay for hiking and kayaking.
  The National Wetlands Awards are presented annually to individuals 
who have excelled in wetlands protection and is administered by the 
Environmental Law Institute and is supported by the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA National Marine 
Fisheries Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA 
Forest Service, and Federal Highway Administration. A committee of 
wetlands experts representing federal and state agencies, academia, 
conservation organizations, and the private sector selects the Award 
recipients.
  Florence is well deserving of this award. Her work to create and 
preserve the refuge has produced enormous benefits. It has sustained an 
immense number of birds and endangered species. It has also brought 
awareness to the Bay Area of the value of wetlands, and vastly improved 
residents' quality of life by providing them with public spaces to 
escape from the hustle and bustle of urban life. Florence is an 
inspiration to all of us who care about passing on a healthy 
environment to future generations.

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