[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 129 (Wednesday, September 10, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1380]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




H.R. 5078--WATERS OF THE UNITED STATES REGULATORY OVERREACH PROTECTION 
                                  ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. KATHY CASTOR

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 10, 2014

  Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I strongly oppose H.R. 5078, the 
Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act. I 
unfortunately missed the vote due to a conflict and had I been present, 
I would have voted ``no.'' H.R. 5078 would prevent a proposed rule to 
protect clean water from taking effect and continue to give polluters a 
free pass.
  Two Supreme Court decisions in 2001 and 2006 resulted in confusion 
and uncertainty about which bodies of water are subject to federal 
jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act, creating a loophole. This led 
the Bush Administration to issue guidance for regulated communities, 
but instead created the currently inconsistent, patchwork system. The 
proposed rule replaces the Bush Administration era guidance documents 
to reduce regulatory uncertainty and establish a clear process for 
asserting Clean Water Act jurisdiction over waters.
  The proposed rule closes the loophole by clarifying federal 
jurisdiction to protect America's waters and does not seek to regulate 
bodies of water which have not historically been regulated under the 
Clean Water Act. In fact, the rule proposes to exclude ephemeral and 
intermittent ditches while maintaining historical exclusions and 
exemptions for agriculture. The rule also provides clarity about which 
wetlands are covered by the Clean Water Act. The rule would also 
prevent the agencies from moving forward with any similar rule or 
guidance regarding the scope and enforcement of the Clean Water Act. 
According to a Tampa Bay Times editorial in support of the rule, ``the 
EPA estimates that the marginal costs of implementing the rule would 
generate about double the return in benefits to public health, flood 
control and the economy.''
  Federal regulations to close the existing loophole and protect water 
quality are especially important to my home state of Florida which 
depends on a healthy environment for a prosperous economy. As the 
loophole stands, nearly 30 percent of Florida's streams and millions of 
wetlands are at risk of unchecked pollution and development and 
threatens the drinking water for 1.7 Floridians. More than 80 percent 
of the lakes and reservoirs that have been tested in Florida have 
failed basic water quality standards. Densely populated Hillsborough 
County, where my district is located, ranks first in Florida for miles 
of streams unprotected by the Clean Water Act. The rule would improve 
Florida's waters by closing the existing loophole. Unfortunately, this 
piece of legislation before us would prevent the government from 
cleaning our polluted waters. The President threatened to veto this 
legislation for good reason, noting that ``this bill is not an act of 
good government.''
  Millions of Americans get their drinking water from rivers, lakes, 
and reservoirs that are at risk of pollution from upstream sources. In 
Florida, several rivers, including the Apalachicola, Choctawhatchee, 
Suwannee and Escambia Rivers have their headwaters in other states. 
Floridians are directly affected by upstream degradation to the quality 
of these rivers before they enter our state. Major pollution from the 
Mississippi River and other out of state factors have severely harmed 
the Apalachicola Bay and consequently the northwest Florida economy 
where the sponsor's district is located.
  Florida's economy is inextricably linked to a healthy environment, 
particularly its bodies of water and the wetlands those waters rely on. 
Wetlands, rich in biodiversity, provide services that are critical for 
drinking water, water quality, water supply, groundwater recharge, 
flood control, recreation such as fishing, and habitat for threatened 
and endangered species. Florida, the state with the most wetlands in 
the continental United States, has already lost half its historic 
wetlands acreage due to degradation and continues to do so.
  Florida's and the Gulf of Mexico's waters are poisoned every year by 
more than 4 billion gallons of oil, fertilizer ingredients and other 
hazardous materials. Tampa Bay, the largest open water estuary on the 
Gulf, is also fouled by other sources, with more than half of the 
nitrogen entering it coming from urban stormwater runoff that carries 
lawn fertilizer, pesticide residues, and trash. Pollution throughout 
Florida's waterways has led to record amounts of toxic red tide and 
algae blooms which are created by nutrients from farm fertilizers. 
Scientists theorize that algae and red tide have contributed to the 
record deaths of 10 percent of the Florida manatee population over the 
past year. Likely due to red tide, pollution has resulted in an 
unprecedented number of deaths of dolphins and pelicans.
  Pollution costs Floridians billions of dollars each year. Sustainable 
water supplies are at risk in Florida due to the loss of natural 
systems. The rule is needed to restore protections for streams and 
wetlands across the country. Florida's economy and public health depend 
on clean water.
  I would like to submit a list of the members of the Florida 
Conservation Coalition. The Coalition is composed of over 50 
conservation organizations and thousands of individuals devoted to 
protecting and conserving Florida's land, fish and wildlife and water 
resources and it strongly opposes this piece of legislation.

                     Florida Conservation Coalition

       Bob Graham, Fmr Governor of Florida and U.S. Senator; 
     Nathaniel Pryor Reed, Fmr Assistant-Secretary of the 
     Interior; Commissioner Lee Constantine--Seminole County 
     Commissioner; Audubon Florida; Audubon of Southwest Florida; 
     Conservancy of Southwest Florida; Florida Wildlife 
     Federation; Friends of the Everglades; National Parks 
     Conservation Association; Peace River Audubon Society; Sierra 
     Club; South Florida Audubon Society.
       League of Women Voters; 1000 Friends of Florida; St. Johns 
     Riverkeeper; Trust for Public Land; Lester Abberger; John 
     Finlayson--Former Chairman SRWMD; Bill Herr, Environmental 
     Consultant, Former Chairman SJRWMD; Gary Kuhl, Former Exec 
     Director, SWFWMD; Jay Landers, Fmr Secretary of the 
     Department of Environmental Protection; Sonny Vergara, Fmr 
     Executive Director SWFWMD and SJRWMD; Estus Whitfield, Fmr 
     Principal Environmental Advisor to 5 FL Governors.
       Affiliates:
       Alliance of Florida Land Trust; Alliance to Protect Water 
     Resources, Inc.; Back Ten Feet; Caloosahatchee River Citizens 
     Association; Center for Earth Jurisprudence; Citrus County 
     Audubon Society; Citrus County Council; Conservation Trust 
     for America; Coral Gables Area Democratic Club; Current 
     Problems; Dade City Garden Club.
       Defenders of Wildlife; Duval Audubon Society; Estero 
     Council of Community Leaders; EarthJustice; Florida Consumer 
     Action Network; Florida Conservation Alliance; Florida's 
     Eden; Florida Defenders of the Environment; Florida Native 
     Plant Society; Florida Federation of Garden Clubs; Florida 
     Trail Association; Florida Outdoor Recreation Coalition.
       Friends of the Wekiva River; Florida Wildflower Foundation; 
     Great Old Broads for Wilderness; Gulf Restoration Network; 
     Ideas For Us; Lake Area Water Alliance; Homosassa River 
     Alliance; Martin County Conservation Alliance; North Florida 
     Land Trust; Paddle Florida; Rainbow River Conservation, Inc.
       Santa Fe Lake Dwellers Association; Save Our Suwanee; Save 
     the Manatee Club; Silver Springs Alliance; Suwanee River 
     Garden Club; Southwest Florida Watershed Council; St. Johns 
     River Alliance; The Conservation Fund; United Waterfowlers--
     Florida; Wildlands Conservation; Wakulla Springs Alliance; 
     War, Inc.; Wildwood Preservation Society.

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