[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 113 (Thursday, August 1, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1189]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


   RECOGNIZING SIMPSON AND THE 25TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE ST. PAUL 
                      WATERWAY RESTORATION PROJECT

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                            HON. ADAM SMITH

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, August 1, 2013

  Mr. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the 25th 
anniversary of the St. Paul Waterway Project and the leading role that 
Simpson, a Pacific Northwest forest products company in operation since 
1890, played in this effort.
  In 1985, the Simpson company purchased a paper mill in Tacoma, 
Washington along the St. Paul Waterway and developed a plan to revive 
and clean up the area. At the time, there were 17 acres of underwater 
sediment to be cleaned up and seven acres of marine habitat in need of 
restoration.
  Located at the Commencement Bay Superfund site, Simpson's plan became 
the St. Paul Waterway Restoration Project. Simpson collaborated with 
the Audubon Society, the Puyallup Tribe, the City of Tacoma, the Sierra 
Club, and the Washington Environmental Council (WEC) Region 10, among 
others, in the successful restoration of this critical coastal habitat.
  The Commencement Bay Superfund project was the first of its kind in 
the U.S. and has since become a model for industrial and environmental 
partnership.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great honor that I recognize the 25th 
anniversary of the St. Paul Waterway Restoration Project. Since its 
completion, we have seen significant improvement in the habitat and in 
the St. Paul Waterway and Commencement Bay.

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