[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 85 (Thursday, June 7, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1011-E1013]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       INTRODUCTION OF THE HUDSON-MOHAWK RIVER BASIN ACT OF 2012

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PAUL TONKO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 7, 2012

  Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the Hudson-Mohawk 
River Basin Act of 2012, a bill to authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to carry out projects and conduct research on water resources 
in the Hudson-Mohawk River Basin. The bill also establishes a river 
basin commission to unify the five States and five sub-basins that 
comprise the Hudson-Mohawk River Basin--the Nation's most densely 
populated river basin--to manage the vital water resources that bind 
together the communities, economies, and heritage of the northeast 
region in an integrated, holistic manner.
  For too long, the five sub-basins of this basin have been addressed 
as independent entities. There is no overarching organization to 
facilitate coordination and collaboration of the many efforts underway 
within each of these areas. The landscape, however, operates 
differently. It functions as a whole. These

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sub-basins are intimately connected to each other by the waters that 
course through their streams and tributaries to eventually reach the 
New York-New Jersey Harbor. Actions taken by individual entities within 
each sub-basin have impacts that extend beyond local borders. Years of 
progress in environmental sciences inform us that ecosystem-based 
management and watershed-level planning will result in the most 
sustainable outcomes. A river basin commission would provide the forum 
to facilitate a whole-basin view.
  Our country has a long experience of using commissions to bring 
different jurisdictions together to promote sound management of common 
resources. In the West, there was early recognition that the seven 
basin States of the Colorado River needed to work together to ensure 
equitable access and proper management of the Colorado River. In the 
East, the Delaware, Susquehanna, and Potomac River Basin Commissions 
and the Appalachian Regional Commission have guided cooperative efforts 
of neighboring States to develop and manage important common resources 
for the benefit of the region. The Hudson-Mohawk River Basin deserves 
similar attention.
  A 2007 study by Canadian authors Dalton, Dalton, and McLean 
documented the current management regime in the Hudson-Mohawk River 
Basin. The findings are staggering, including over 2,000 distinct 
governmental organizations: 12 federal agencies, 67 State agencies, 66 
county agencies, and over 1,700 municipal agencies with some 
jurisdiction over land and water use. There are also over 200 non-
profit organizations that focus on issues related to land and water 
management throughout the Basin. These statistics are indicative of the 
intense interest that residents and communities in the Basin have in 
its resources and their management.
  The New York Ocean and Great Lakes Ecosystem Conservation Council 
created in 2006 was an important step forward recognizing the need to 
manage New York State's coastal areas through ecosystem-based 
management. The Council plays a vital coordinating role for State 
agencies and for the many local governments, non-profit groups, 
businesses, and citizens who depend upon our coastal ecosystems. These 
systems are influenced by the waters that flow into them and connect 
them through the Hudson, Mohawk, Passaic, and Raritan Rivers.
  The sheer number and diversity of organizations operating within 
these five basin States present a significant challenge to considering 
projects and policies that impact the basin in a holistic manner. 
Despite these hurdles, these many entities have provided tremendous 
vision, stewardship and creativity for many years. A commission would 
be in a position to build upon their work and provide the five States 
of the basin a single forum for working together with the Federal 
Government to coordinate and encourage cooperation among the many 
interested parties who have a stake in the basin. Development of a 
basin-wide plan that places the individual on-going efforts into a 
whole-basin context would facilitate our ability to apply ecosystem-
based management principles in a consistent and efficient manner.
  The Mohawk and Upper Hudson sub-basins contribute over half of the 
flow of water to the lower Hudson River. Water quality in these basins 
directly impacts quality in the Lower Hudson. Yet, in comparison to the 
Lower Hudson, these two areas have far less institutional 
infrastructure and have received far less attention in the ongoing 
effort to restore the health of the Hudson River and its estuary. The 
Lower Hudson is a great success story--one that I would like to see 
repeated for the Mohawk and Upper Hudson. The locally-spawned efforts 
of dedicated citizens to embrace the Lower Hudson, advocate for its 
stewardship, and work to improve its floodplain served as the impetus 
for State government to become more involved. The goal of this 
legislation is to create a basin commission in order to assist these 
communities further and to engage the other sub-basins to accelerate 
development of their water resource programs by imitating successful 
programs of the Lower Hudson. The organizational infrastructure of the 
Lower Hudson Sub-basin provides an excellent foundation for building 
similar organizational strength in the Mohawk and Upper Hudson Sub-
basins. Stronger partnerships among communities in the Upper Hudson and 
Mohawk Sub-basins will enable these regions to redesign and rebuild 
infrastructure to promote economic development, provide better flood 
protection, and improve water quality that will complement the efforts 
of downstream communities and improve conditions not only in the 
immediate area but also in the Lower Hudson and the Harbor.

  The Raritan and Passaic River Sub-basins have, for too long, been 
viewed as mature industrial corridors rather than as sources of 
community revitalization and economic opportunity. Through the efforts 
of the State of New Jersey in partnership with the Federal Government 
and many dedicated non-profit organizations like the Raritan Headwaters 
Association and the Passaic River Coalition, water quality of these 
mighty rivers has improved in recent decades. However, more effort is 
needed if these watersheds and the marshes and bays of the New York-New 
Jersey Harbor are to be restored to ecological health and the New York 
Bight is to reach its full environmental and economic potential. The 
excellent work being done by the Environmental Protection Agency's, 
EPA, New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary Program and Hudson River 
Estuary Program--the latter of which was recently expanded to Troy, 
NY--would be aided greatly by improvements in the water quality of the 
rivers that eventually flow into the Harbor. EPA and other agencies 
acknowledge the importance of a holistic approach, and I believe that 
formation of a whole basin plan will afford us the opportunity to build 
upon the successes achieved in each of the Sub-basins and to magnify 
their impacts throughout the Basin. In addition, the comprehensive plan 
developed by the commission through an inspired, collaborative process 
with the public would provide the framework for additional Federal 
resources for the region.
  My legislation is modeled on other successful regional programs and 
river basin commissions. The Governors of each of the five basin States 
would serve on the commission along with the Secretary of the Interior 
as a representative of the Federal Government. The Commission is 
charged with planning and implementing projects and policies that 
govern the use of water resources in the basin. The Commission would 
adopt an annual budget including information about individual projects 
and their costs, along with identifying the appropriate financing. The 
bill provides the Secretary of the Interior with $25 million per year 
to fund projects that are consistent with the comprehensive plan and 
spelled out in more detail in the water resources program.
  The Commission's plan, developed in consultation with the member 
States, Federal agencies, local governments, non-governmental 
organizations, and all other water users, will tie together the many 
organizations and interests throughout the basin to tackle large-scale 
projects. The plan must be developed in collaboration with citizens and 
local communities. It would provide a unifying vision for the basin and 
its water resources. And, as I have indicated above, the plan developed 
through a collaborative process will build a basin-wide organizational 
structure that will give basin states and communities the framework to 
compete for additional resources for the region.
  The natural and historic resources of the Hudson-Mohawk River Basin 
are fundamental building blocks that we can use to re-invigorate local 
communities throughout the Basin. The devastating flood events that 
occurred in many communities in the Basin last year compel us to re-
think our connection to the rivers and tributaries throughout the 
Basin. Our interconnectedness was visible to the naked eye. We need to 
better adapt our infrastructure to be more resilient to floods. But 
more than that, if we integrate improvements in water quality and 
wildlife habitats into plans for the redevelopment of waterfronts, we 
will reconnect citizens and communities to the river to yield 
recreational, community, and economic benefits. As communities are 
drawn together through the public planning process authorized in the 
bill, they will be able to work on common priorities and launch a new 
chapter of prosperity in the history of the Basin.
  The Hudson-Mohawk River Basin, together with the Erie Canal, connects 
the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean. The Hudson-Mohawk River Basin is 
the cradle of our American democracy. The footprints of the earliest 
North American civilization and the early development of our modern 
Nation are replete and scattered throughout this entire region. The 
waters of the Hudson, Mohawk, Raritan, and Passaic Rivers formed our 
early transportation networks and provided the food and power that 
enabled us to forge the Nation and initiate the early westward 
expansion of the country we know today. Essentially, the water of the 
Hudson-Mohawk Basin is the ink that wrote our early history. This 
important common heritage should be revered and celebrated. It has been 
more than 400 years since the first European settlements were 
established in the watersheds of the Hudson, Mohawk, Raritan and 
Passaic Rivers. We should keep faith with those early pioneers and 
ensure a bright future for our children and generations to follow by 
working together to maintain the health and beauty of these mighty 
waterways and promoting economic development compatible with these 
great environmental assets. I believe the establishment of a Hudson-
Mohawk River Basin program with a river basin commission to guide this 
effort will help us to accomplish these worthy goals.

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