[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 9, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E751-E752]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 
                                  2013

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. PEDRO R. PIERLUISI

                             of puerto rico

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 8, 2012

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under

[[Page E752]]

     consideration the bill (H.R. 5326) making appropriations for 
     the Departments of Commerce and Justice, Science, and Related 
     Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2013, and 
     for other purposes:

  Mr. PIERLUISI. Mr. Chair, I rise to reinforce the comments made by 
our colleague from Guam, Ms. Bordallo, regarding the importance of 
funding in Fiscal Year 2013 and future years for coral reef research 
conducted by NOAA and its external partners. I represent Puerto Rico, 
one of the several U.S. jurisdictions that has tropical shallow-water 
coral reefs located off its coasts. Additionally, last year as a result 
of a federally-funded mission led by NOAA deep sea corals located off 
the southwestern coast of Puerto Rico were discovered at a depth of 500 
feet and in an area spanning 12 miles across.
  These reefs are the ``rainforests of the sea'' and their protection 
is linked to the success of our ecotourism economy, the integrity of 
our coastlines, the quality of our water, and the health of the rich 
and diverse marine life that surrounds our islands. Corals are 
threatened by a variety of stressors. Last month, NOAA released a 
status review of 82 coral species currently being evaluated for 
potential protection under the Endangered Species Act. The report 
indicates that 50 coral species found in U.S. waters are likely to 
become extinct, with seven Caribbean corals extremely likely to go 
extinct, five of which are among the most imperiled species.
  Simply put, corals are decreasing around Puerto Rico and elsewhere in 
U.S. waters. The science that stands to be funded by this bill, H.R. 
5326, is important for both monitoring the health of these corals and 
understanding the causes of their decline. Once understood, local, 
state and federal managers will be able to work together on mitigation 
and protection strategies. The decisions made in the final bill will 
determine whether and to what extent NOAA will be able to engage 
external partners, especially in the jurisdictions where coral reefs 
are located, to conduct this important science. I hope that, at the end 
of this process, NOAA will have the resources it needs from Congress to 
increase its collaboration with external research partners and to fund 
the science needed to inform management decisions for protecting coral 
reefs in U.S. waters. I, too, thank the Chairman, Mr. Wolf, and the 
Ranking Member, Mr. Fattah, for their commitment to work with the other 
body in ensuring this priority is sufficiently funded during the 
conference process.

                          ____________________