[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 42 (Thursday, March 13, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H2369-H2370]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            WORLD WATER DAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania). The Chair 
recognizes the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.

[[Page H2370]]

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, today, on Capitol Hill, we are watching 
several hundred dedicated volunteers fan out to share their vision of 
the United States' providing leadership for safe drinking water and 
sanitation around the globe.
  They will point out that, today, women will spend 200 million hours 
gathering water for their families--200 million hours that will not be 
spent farming or in economic enterprise, 200 million hours that will 
not be spent in school, 200 million hours that too often take them away 
from the village and put them at risk for physical sexual assault. They 
will be talking to our colleagues on Capitol Hill about some critical 
legislation that my colleague Ted Poe and I have introduced, H.R. 2901, 
the Paul Simon Water for the World Act, which will, in a deficit-
neutral fashion, help refine the approach that the United States, the 
USAID, and the State Department take in providing water assistance 
around the globe.
  I must say, this morning I heard, in an eloquent fashion, Congressman 
Poe lay out the need, the vision, and the solution. I cannot say enough 
about the bipartisan leadership of my colleague from Texas. He points 
out that, as a Democrat from the Northwest, I don't have all that much 
in common with my Republican friend from Texas, but this is an area in 
which we are united. The United States must do all it can to prevent 
unnecessary disease and death from contaminated water, but it goes 
beyond issues of disease and sanitation.
  Look at what has happened in Syria. Between 2006 and 2011, nearly 60 
percent of Syria's landmass was ravaged by a severe drought. The water 
table was already too low because of irresponsible farming practices. 
It wiped out the livelihoods of almost a million Syrian farmers, and it 
created a massive population of drought refugees that flooded into the 
cities and added to the instability of that tragic country.
  It did not cause the civil war, but the failure of the government to 
respond to the drought played a huge role in fueling the uprising, made 
possible by that sad, tragic consequence of events. Now the fourth 
largest city in Jordan is a refugee camp where men and women and 
children are fighting for survival and water as they cross the border 
to escape the violence. And this is a growing problem. The global 
population has now passed 7 billion people, and much of that growth has 
taken place in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, two regions of the world in 
greatest need when it comes to water and sanitation.
  Mr. Speaker, we have within our capacity the ability to make a 
difference, and I am pleased to have worked with volunteers from coast 
to coast--from churches and rotary clubs and students--who are making a 
difference in their own communities. It is important for Congress to 
pass the Water for the World Act and to support the terrific work of 
Congresswomen Granger and Lowey, on the Appropriations Committee, that 
has protected and has actually enhanced a little bit this important 
money that the United States provides--a small amount in the overall 
scheme of things but one that has a tremendous impact on lives around 
the world.
  I urge my colleagues to take the time to listen to these dedicated 
volunteers. They have a message we should take to heart and act upon.

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