[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 149 (Tuesday, December 9, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H8892-H8897]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE ACT OF 2014
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 5764) to authorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and
for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5764
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative Act of 2014''.
SEC. 2. GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE.
Section 118(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1268(c)) is amended by striking paragraph (7) and
inserting the following:
``(7) Great lakes restoration initiative.--
``(A) Establishment.--There is established in the Agency a
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (referred to in this
paragraph as the `Initiative') to carry out programs and
projects for Great Lakes protection and restoration.
``(B) Focus areas.--The Initiative shall prioritize
programs and projects carried out in coordination with non-
Federal partners and programs and projects that address
priority areas each fiscal year, including--
``(i) the remediation of toxic substances and areas of
concern;
``(ii) the prevention and control of invasive species and
the impacts of invasive species;
``(iii) the protection and restoration of nearshore health
and the prevention and mitigation of nonpoint source
pollution;
``(iv) habitat and wildlife protection and restoration,
including wetlands restoration and preservation; and
``(v) accountability, monitoring, evaluation,
communication, and partnership activities.
``(C) Projects.--Under the Initiative, the Agency shall
collaborate with Federal partners, including the Great Lakes
Interagency Task Force, to select the best combination of
programs and projects for Great Lakes protection and
restoration using appropriate principles and criteria,
including whether a program or project provides--
``(i) the ability to achieve strategic and measurable
environmental outcomes that implement the Great Lakes Action
Plan and the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement;
``(ii) the feasibility of--
``(I) prompt implementation;
``(II) timely achievement of results; and
``(III) resource leveraging; and
``(iii) the opportunity to improve interagency and inter-
organizational coordination and collaboration to reduce
duplication and streamline efforts.
``(D) Implementation of projects.--
``(i) In general.--Funds made available to carry out the
Initiative shall be used to strategically implement--
``(I) Federal projects; and
``(II) projects carried out in coordination with States,
Indian tribes, municipalities, institutions of higher
education, and other organizations.
``(ii) Transfer of funds.--With amounts made available for
the Initiative each fiscal year, the Administrator may--
``(I) transfer not more than $300,000,000 to the head of
any Federal department or agency, with the concurrence of the
department or agency head, to carry out activities to support
the Initiative and the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement;
and
``(II) enter into an interagency agreement with the head of
any Federal department or agency to carry out activities
described in subclause (I).
``(E) Scope.--
``(i) In general.--Projects shall be carried out under the
Initiative on multiple levels, including--
``(I) Great Lakes-wide; and
``(II) Great Lakes basin-wide.
``(ii) Limitation.--No funds made available to carry out
the Initiative may be used for any water infrastructure
activity (other than a green infrastructure project that
improves habitat and other ecosystem functions in the Great
Lakes) for which amounts are made available from--
``(I) a State water pollution control revolving fund
established under title VI; or
``(II) a State drinking water revolving loan fund
established under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act
(42 U.S.C. 300j-12).
``(F) Activities by other federal agencies.--Each relevant
Federal department or agency shall, to the maximum extent
practicable--
``(i) maintain the base level of funding for the Great
Lakes activities of that department or agency without regard
to funding under the Initiative; and
``(ii) identify new activities and projects to support the
environmental goals of the Initiative.
``(G) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
carry out the Initiative $300,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2015 through 2019.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. Gibbs) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Bishop) each will
control 20 minutes.
[[Page H8893]]
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.
General Leave
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 5764.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Ohio?
There was no objection.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative Act of 2014.
The Great Lakes are an important resource for the United States. More
than 30 million people live in the Great Lakes region, and the lakes
help support over $200 billion a year in economic activity.
To help ensure coordination between Federal, State, and private
parties in protecting and restoring the Great Lakes, a Great Lakes
Interagency Task Force of Federal agencies was created in 2004. In
2010, the task force released an action plan as part of the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative to accelerate efforts to protect and restore the
Great Lakes.
In September of this year, the Federal agencies released an updated
Action Plan II, which summarized the actions that the Federal agencies
planned to implement during fiscal years 2015 through 2019 using Great
Lakes funding. The action plan aims to strategically target the biggest
threats to the Great Lakes ecosystem and to accelerate progress toward
long-term goals.
Congressman Joyce introduced H.R. 5764 to amend the Great Lakes
program provisions under section 118 of the Clean Water Act to formally
authorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative for 5 years and to
carry out projects and activities for Great Lakes protection and
restoration.
Under the initiative, the Environmental Protection Agency is to
collaborate with other Federal partners, including the Great Lakes
Interagency Task Force, to select the best combination of projects and
activities for Great Lakes protection and restoration. Specified
principles and criteria are to be used in selecting projects and
activities, including whether they, one, improve the interagency and
interorganizational coordination and collaboration to reduce
duplication and streamline efforts; two, provide the ability to timely
achieve strategic and measurable environmental outcomes and leverage
resources with other Federal and non-Federal partners.
The bill authorizes the initiative for fiscal year 2015 through 2019.
I encourage all Members to support H.R. 5764.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative Act of 2014.
Let me start by recognizing the hard work of the bipartisan
cosponsors of this legislation, including the retiring dean of the
House, Mr. Dingell, and commend their efforts to move this legislation.
H.R. 5764 would authorize Federal appropriations for the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative, a program initiated by this administration to
coordinate the Federal restoration efforts of the Great Lakes.
For the decades leading up to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative,
many Federal agencies were involved in the cleanup and protection of
the Great Lakes. However, their efforts were far from coordinated,
resulting in inefficient cleanup activities that made little progress
in the overall health of the Great Lakes.
In 2010, this administration launched the initiative to accelerate
efforts to protect and restore the largest fresh surface water system
in the world, the Great Lakes. Under the leadership of the former EPA
Administrator Lisa Jackson, this initiative prioritized five focus
areas: cleaning up toxics and the Great Lakes areas of concern;
combating invasive species; promoting the near-shore health by
protecting watersheds from polluted runoff; restoring wetlands and
other habitats; and tracking the progress made, as well as educating
and working with strategic partners.
As of August 2013, the initiative has funded more than 1,500 projects
and programs of the highest priority to meet immediate cleanup and
restoration and protection needs. As a result of these efforts, there
is tangible proof that the health of the Great Lakes is improving--from
the delisting of two additional U.S. Great Lakes Areas of Concern to a
list of over 30 success stories recently documented by the Healing Our
Waters Coalition. Yet additional progress is needed, and the
authorization of appropriations contained in H.R. 5764 is a good step
forward to continuing this effort.
However, I would note that most of the successes of the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative can all be traced back to one factor that I have
highlighted over and over again in this Congress: the critical need for
robust Federal funding.
As I noted during floor consideration of the Water Resources Reform
and Development Act of 2013, as well as during numerous other
authorization and appropriation bills this Congress, to see real
progress in the programs we establish, we need also to provide the
critical funding to our Federal agencies that implement these programs.
Too often these days we seem driven to cut Federal spending for
programs that provide a real benefit to our Nation without an awareness
of the consequences of these actions. This Chamber will recognize that
there are places where the Federal Government can help and should be
making increased investments, such as to repair our crumbling
infrastructure or to protect our fragile natural environment. Yet later
this week, I fear that we will again be asked to vote on an
appropriations package for the Federal Government that woefully
underfunds critical investments in our Nation's future, from building
the transportation infrastructure that will keep our country
competitive into the next century, to investing in the water-related
infrastructure that protects communities, families, and businesses, to
making targeted improvements to our natural environment to ensure the
protection of human, economic, and environmental health for generations
to come.
We need to do better. We need to recognize that the expenditure of
Federal money to invest in our Nation is not inherently a bad thing. We
need to understand that the Federal Government needs to be an active
partner in addressing many of the complex challenges facing our States,
our communities, and our everyday lives. And we need to support the
missions of those Federal agencies we have charged with ensuring the
long-term economic and environmental health of this Nation. These are
only some of the ongoing challenges that face this Nation, and we need
a Congress that is serious about taking on the hard questions and
making the right investments, not only for our own lives and
livelihoods, but for those generations of Americans to come.
Mr. Speaker, I commend the bipartisan sponsors of this legislation
for ensuring that the new authorization shows some willingness to
provide robust funding for these restoration efforts rather than simply
and mindlessly cutting these programs. I urge support of H.R. 5764.
I reserve the balance of my time.
December 8, 2014.
Dear Members of the Great Lakes House Delegation: We are
writing to convey our support for H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative Act of 2014, bipartisan legislation
recently introduced by Representatives David Joyce, Louise
Slaughter, Sander Levin, and John Dingell. We understand the
bill may be considered this week under suspension of the
rules and urge you to support it. This is a top regional
priority for the Great Lakes states, local communities,
tribes, conservation organizations, and business and
industry.
This legislation provides formal authorization for the
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), an ambitious
regional restoration program for the Great Lakes that is
cleaning up degraded ``toxic hotspots,'' halting Asian carp
and other invasive species, and preventing polluted runoff
that closes beaches and causes harmful algal blooms. It
provides a solid legislative platform to ensure our region
continues to work together successfully to implement a
science-based and outcomes-focused plan of action for
restoring and protecting the Great Lakes.
The bill directs U.S. EPA to collaborate with the Great
Lakes Interagency Task Force and state and local partners to
select the best combination of projects to protect and
restore the Great Lakes. It focuses on restoration projects
that can be implemented quickly, will achieve environmental
outcomes outlined in the new Great Lakes
[[Page H8894]]
Action Plan and Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, and that
leverage other funding.
Passing this legislation now will clarify the focus and
accountability of our restoration efforts and ensure the
program continues to achieve effective results. We recently
worked with federal agencies to rewrite the GL RI Action
Plan, which lays out our region's restoration goals and
objectives, and revises how we measure progress. The new plan
addresses the Government Accountability Office's review,
which found no major deficiencies in the GLRI program.
Restoring the Great Lakes creates jobs, stimulates economic
development, and protects fresh drinking water for 30 million
people. The lakes currently generate over 1.5 million jobs
and $60 billion in wages annually, and provide the foundation
for a $30 billion tourism economy. Clearly, the Great Lakes
are an invaluable resource worth restoring and protecting,
and this legislation is critical to our collective efforts
toward this end. We urge you to support this bill.
Sincerely,
Tim Eder,
Executive Director, Great Lakes Commission.
Todd Ambs,
Director, Healing Our Waters--Great Lakes Coalition.
William Taylor,
Chair, U.S. Section, Great Lakes Fishery Commission.
David A. Ullrich,
Executive Director, Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities
Initiative.
Jane A. TenEyck,
Executive Director, Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority.
Kathryn A. Buckner,
President, Council of Great Lakes Industries.
Ed Wolking, Jr.,
Executive Director, Great Lakes Metro Chambers Coalition.
____
Healing Our Waters--
Great Lakes Coalition,
December 8, 2014.
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Representative: On behalf of the Healing Our Waters--
Great Lakes Coalition, we write today to ask you to vote for
H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of
2014. The legislation is vital in the ongoing effort to
restore the Great Lakes, which supplies drinking water to
more than 30 million people.
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act helps achieve
our region's restoration goals by formally authorizing the
popular Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). The GLRI
is a successful, bipartisan response to protecting and
restoring one-fifth of the world's surface fresh water. Our
region's recent restoration efforts started when President
George W. Bush asked for a restoration blueprint, which the
1,500 stakeholders that were a part of the Great Lakes
Regional Collaboration produced in 2005. President Barack
Obama continued this effort when he recommended funding in
his fiscal year 2010 budget for the implementation of this
strategy through Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The GLRI
is an innovative, action-oriented approach targeting the
region's biggest environmental problems like invasive
species, legacy contaminants, habitat loss, and polluted
runoff from farms and cities. It allows the Environmental
Protection Agency to enter into interagency agreements with
other federal agencies to utilize their existing competitive
grant programs allowing the region to quickly and effectively
undertake restoration work throughout the Great Lakes basin.
Because of this coordinated effort between federal agencies
and non-federal stakeholders, we are seeing tremendous
results. Since 2010, three U.S. Areas of Concern (Presque
Isle Bay, PA; Deer Lake, MI; White Lake, MI) have been
cleaned up and taken off the list of contaminated sites.
Before the GLRI, only one site had been delisted since 1987
(Oswego River, NY). The management actions necessary for
delisting the Sheboygan River (WI), Waukegan Harbor (IL), and
Ashtabula River (OH) AOCs have also been completed. The GLRI
has accelerated the cleanup of regional toxic sites. Between
2010 through 2013, the GLRI removed 42 impairments--from
drinking water restrictions to swimming advisories--from 17
contaminated sites. The number of so-called ``beneficial use
impairments'' that have been removed across the region has
quadrupled under the GLRI. In fact, more impairments have
been removed since the GLRI began in 2010 than in the
preceding 22 years.
In addition, from 2004 to 2009, the Great Lakes region was
the only area in the country to show a gain in wetland
acreage. Now the GLRI is building on that foundation with a
goal to restore one million acres in the basin. So far, the
Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Natural
Resources Conservation Service, and National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (among others) restored,
protected, or enhanced over 115,000 acres of wetlands and
other habitat. More than 1,900 river miles were cleared of
over 250 barriers resulting in fish swimming into stretches
of river where they had been absent for decades. Based on
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service monitoring, GLRI-sponsored
actions are increasing self-sustaining populations of native
species important to the Great Lakes, like lake sturgeon--as
well as supporting the region's multi-billion dollar outdoor
recreation economy. For example, efforts in the Saginaw River
watershed have contributed to the now self-sustaining walleye
population in Saginaw Bay, MI.
However, there is still much work that needs to be done.
Aging sewers, invasive species, and toxic pollutants are just
a few of the pervasive threats that impact the region,
endangering human and wildlife health, lowering property
values, and hurting the region's economy. Without support
restoration efforts will slow allowing problems to get worse
and more expensive to solve. Ultimately, reducing investment
in the Great Lakes won't save money--it will cost the nation
more. As the source of drinking water for 30 million people,
the nation cannot afford to stop protecting and restoring the
Great Lakes.
We hope you will vote for the Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative Act of 2014. This bill is important to ensure
accountability, transparency, and results. It sets a
permanent programmatic stage from which the GLRI can continue
to succeed.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to have
your staff contact Chad Lord, our coalition's policy
director.
Sincerely,
Lynn McClure,
Co-chair.
KriSty Meyer,
Co-chair.
Nicole Barker,
Co-chair.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio
(Mr. Joyce), the sponsor of the bill.
Mr. JOYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my full support for
H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2014. The
reason is simple, Mr. Speaker: the Great Lakes are a national and
economic treasure in the U.S., which contains one-fifth of the world's
freshwater supply.
The GLRI is the most important, significant, and productive effort to
date to protect these five lakes that provide drinking water and jobs
for millions of people. It is crucial that the GLRI be formally
authorized at $300 million for the next 5 years to ensure that the
great work already done is not lost.
{time} 1430
This does not add any new spending and will continue to make sure
necessary resources are available.
GLRI is an action-oriented, results-driven initiative targeting the
most significant problems within the basin, including invasive species
like Asian carp, toxins and contaminated sediment, nonpoint source
pollution, and habitat and wildlife protection and restoration.
The programs are working, and the GLRI will ensure we have healthy
Great Lakes, while boosting the economies in this vast region.
The Great Lakes are one of the jewels of the United States. When I
talk about the Great Lakes to people who are not from the region, I
make sure to point out their benefits are twofold: economic and
environmental.
Let me give you a couple of statistics that will illustrate how
important it is that we make this critical investment.
Six quadrillion. We are not talking about a little freshwater here.
There are six quadrillion gallons of water in the Great Lakes basin.
Let's let that number soak in.
$62 billion. The Great Lakes basin supports a diverse range of
industries and small businesses, and that is how much is generated by
wages in the industry in the Great Lakes region.
Thirty million. That is the number of people who live within the
Great Lakes basin and rely on them for safe drinking water,
transportation, and recreation.
$14 million. That is how much money in GLRI funds that was spent to
clean up the Ashtabula River, in the heart of my district. Because
these programs are working, I was able to see the Ashtabula River taken
off the EPA's designated list of places that are ``areas of concern'' a
couple of months ago. That is a really big deal for northeast Ohio.
1.5 million. That is how many jobs are directly related to the Great
Lakes.
3,500. That is how many diverse species of plant and wildlife call
the Great Lakes home.
Finally, the last and most telling statistic for you today is the
number three. Three is the number of days that residents of Toledo in
my home State of Ohio were unable to drink the water in their homes
because of the harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. The water
[[Page H8895]]
in Lake Erie was literally green. That is unacceptable.
This is a clear reason why we need to pass this bill and authorize
GLRI--with bipartisan support--because no American should ever be
afraid to drink the tap water in their own home.
Supporting this bill will lock in the programs that work to ensure
our Nation's largest bodies of freshwater are protected and will
continue to be protected in the future.
Before I close, I want to thank Chairman Shuster, as well as my
colleague and dear friend from Ohio, Representative Gibbs, and the
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for their help on this
bill. We have spent a lot of time working on this issue, and I am very
grateful for their assistance.
I would also like to thank Majority Leader McCarthy for scheduling
this important bill for floor consideration.
I am very excited the GLRI enjoys so much bipartisan support from
Great Lakes Members here in Congress. When we make these investments in
our Great Lakes, results are produced for our constituents, the
environment, and businesses throughout the vast region.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.
Mr. JOYCE. It is critical we formally authorize GLRI so that people
who live in Toledo or Mentor or Conneaut in my district don't have to
worry about days ahead without fresh drinking water.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), who is a cosponsor of the bill.
Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member Mr. Bishop for
yielding and thank the chairman Mr. Gibbs, and, obviously, my colleague
Mr. Joyce, who just spoke.
I rise in support strong support of H.R. 5764.
Since the creation of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, our
Nation has made great strides in reviving and protecting our Nation's
greatest freshwater treasure, our Great Lakes.
Still, despite progress, this past summer presented a stark reminder
of the unfinished challenge, as a toxic algal bloom shut off the fresh
drinking water to over half a million people and businesses in Ohio and
Michigan for 3 days across Lake Erie's western basin, the largest
watershed in the entire Great Lakes.
The public, though shocked, was orderly and beneficent. We didn't
have riots or civil disorder.
During that 3-day crisis, astoundingly, we learned communities along
the lake were not equipped locally to test the water so vital to their
own survival. Two precious days were wasted sending and resending vials
and samples 5 hours away to EPA labs, and then back and then back
again. This simply is unacceptable. Proper testing equipment on Lake
Erie is fundamental, fundamental to a response time commensurate with
the challenge that remains before us.
The Lake Erie community needs its own water testing equipment and
certified lab. Already local universities and health departments have
been assembling key components of necessary equipment for a certified
lab. It is incumbent upon the GLRI to help us find a way to provide the
remaining $147,000--not million--$147,000 we have to deliver.
To date, the lack of response from our Federal agencies is
astounding. Lake Erie's water quality is an emergency due to the toxic
algal blooms.
When we see Federal agencies diverting hundreds of millions of
dollars abroad to dams in Afghanistan to deliver freshwater, yet
somehow our own EPA can't identify funds to protect the American people
who live along Lake Erie and Lake Michigan and draw their life source
from it, I stand aghast.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman another
1\1/2\ minutes.
Ms. KAPTUR. When our water crisis occurred, the U.S. EPA didn't even
show up or have personnel on the ground. I asked, ``Where is Homeland
Security funding to help during the crisis and after?'' No show. As far
as I am concerned, they are asleep at the wheel. Wake up.
As we prepare for a new spring thaw and the increasing rains that
will come, feeding the algal blooms, the GLRI presents the hope that I
still have that a solution can be found to counter the agency dithering
that our region has experienced throughout this harrowing environmental
crisis.
Surely, America can do better. I really think the chairman Mr. Gibbs,
from the State of Ohio, and my dear colleague Mr. Joyce, from the State
of Ohio, they live at the other end of the lake, but they get the
problem. God bless you. And I thank the ranking member, Mr. Bishop from
the east coast, who understands how important freshwater is to sustain
life in this country. It shouldn't be this hard.
Thank you so very much for this bill. I rise in strong support.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Kelly).
Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the
gentleman from Ohio, but I would also like to thank a lady and a
Member, whom I have begun to call our ``lady of our lakes.'' Ms.
Kaptur, thank you so much for speaking out the way you do about the
Great Lakes, and also Mr. Joyce, a very good colleague and a friend,
because we all understand what it is that makes the Great Lakes great.
I think that is the whole point of what we are talking about. This is a
gift from God.
Now, you have heard Mr. Joyce talk about some of the statistics. But
when you think about it, if you just close your eyes for 1 minute and
visualize in your mind's eye the continental United States, the land
mass. The volume of freshwater contained in our Great Lakes would cover
that land mass by 9\1/2\ to 10 feet. It is an incredible amount of
water. But, more importantly, it is an incredible gift from God. We
have to protect this area. Why would we not?
The statistics that we talk about are overwhelming. We thank a lot of
people for being involved in this. But do you know who I want to thank
more than anybody else? The hardworking American taxpayers. By our
Constitution, we are granted the authority to tax them, but we are also
given the responsibility to spend their money the right way. Why would
we have a situation where we can't imagine that we would fund the Great
Lakes Restoration Initiative? It just doesn't make sense.
One-fifth of the world's freshwater, not one-fifth of Pennsylvania,
not one-fifth of the United States, not one-fifth of North America, but
one-fifth of the world's freshwater resides in our Great Lakes. I would
suggest to people that talk about energy, you can go a lot longer
without oil than you can without drinking water. We have an opportunity
to do something that just makes sense to each and every one of us. We
can get this done.
If I may, just for a minute, to paraphrase Luke 12:48:
To whom much is given, much is required.
Mr. Speaker, I would suggest that this is not an option, this is a
moral obligation on behalf of the people of this great country to look
at one of the assets that we have, a gift from God, and make sure that
we preserve it for future generations.
I thank both gentlemen from Ohio, the lady from Ohio, and everybody
else who was involved in this. I especially want to do a shout-out to a
young man who works in the Northeast-Midwest Coalition, a guy by the
name of Sam Breene, who lives and breathes the lake's initiatives. I
want to thank him for his hard work, and I want to thank everybody
involved in getting this taken care of.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Nolan), who is a member of the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure and a cosponsor of the bill.
(Mr. NOLAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. NOLAN. Mr. Speaker, Members of the House, my district includes
Duluth, Minnesota, the headwaters of the Great Lakes, and, of course,
the magnificent North Shore. I encourage you all to come and visit the
first chance you get.
I, too, rise in strong support of this important bipartisan Great
Lakes Restoration Initiative, and I, too, would be remiss if I didn't
compliment our chairman, Mr. Gibbs, and our ranking
[[Page H8896]]
member, Mr. Bishop, for bringing this legislation forward, and, of
course, our chief sponsor of the legislation, David Joyce, our good
Republican friend. Thank you for your leadership in convincing the
Office of the President and our budget operatives around here that in
this particular case we need a little bit more than what they wanted or
recommended.
I would also remind my colleagues that this is not just about
preservation; this is about taking responsibility for some of the
neglect out of past. As I can tell you, back in Duluth, there was a
time when we had to haul drinking water in for the citizens of Duluth
because the water out of Lake Superior wasn't drinkable. I remember a
time when the Great Lakes were so polluted they were catching on fire
in some places because of neglect. So in many respects we are stepping
up and we are assuming responsibility for neglect in the past.
I don't mind telling you how important it has been to us up in the
Lake Superior area. We have had over 100 projects funded over the years
accomplishing so many things: combating invasive species, mitigating
pollution of the past, identifying toxins that represent a threat to
the basin and our public health and our public safety, protecting wild
rice--I am an old wild rice picker; you can't have enough good native
wild rice--and protecting wildlife in general. What a difference these
projects have made.
Last, but not least, I would be remiss if I didn't thank our
Appropriations Committee members--Marcy Kaptur and Betty McCollum, in
particular--for your stepping up in your leadership in this.
But there is still so much more to be done. That is why I stand here
today and strongly urge my colleagues to give their full support to
this important legislation.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Michigan (Mrs. Miller).
Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, certainly, protecting and
preserving the Great Lakes has always been a principal advocacy of mine
through my entire tenure in public office and even before I came into
public office. I actually grew up on the Great Lakes. My family was in
the marina business. So the lakes were more than just a source of
recreation for us. They put food on the table in our family. Like so
many from the region, the Great Lakes are a proud part of our identity.
We have heard from so many of the various States in the Great Lakes
basin today the passion that we all have for these magnificent,
magnificent Great Lakes.
As has been said, they generate billions of dollars each and every
year through fishing, through the shipping industry, and recreational
activities as well. They are 20 percent of the freshwater drinking
supply on the entire planet, quite frankly.
Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, we have not been the best stewards of
these magnificent lakes, and we do owe it to future generations to help
assure that they are protected and that they are preserved. One great
way to do this for the Great Lakes is through this continued funding
and support of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative that we are
debating here on the floor today.
Over the years, Mr. Speaker, I have seen firsthand the impact the
GLRI is having on our lakes. From dredging to beach and shoreline
restoration to fighting against invasive species, these projects are
critical to protecting and restoring the Great Lakes ecosystems.
{time} 1445
Actually, in October, I was at a place called Harsens Island in my
district where I saw an effort underway to control phragmites, which is
sort of an odd name. It is a huge, invasive plant that has been
actually choking wetlands throughout the Great Lakes Basin, but funding
through this program is eradicating them and letting Mother Nature
breathe again.
Along the shoreline of the St. Clair River, GLRI funded the
restoration of natural habitats, improved stormwater drainage, and
improved water quality, but there is so much more to do. For example,
the Clinton River, which flows through a very major metropolitan area
in southeast Michigan, is in need of similar restoration projects.
We also need to look at ways that can better detect toxins in our
waterways with real-time water quality monitoring systems, some of
which we have in my area as it comes through Lake Huron, the St. Clair
River, into Lake St. Clair, and down the Detroit River. It is not
happening in Lake Erie, and it has to be part of the notification
protocol there as well. We also are having some of these green-blue
algae blooms in our area.
As was mentioned, these are a gift from God. God gave us these
magnificent lakes that have provided us with so much, but we do need to
be better stewards of them, and quite frankly, we have a lot of making
up to do to Mother Nature.
Mr. Speaker, we can start that certainly today by strongly supporting
H.R. 5764, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act. I certainly rise
in strong support of this bill from the gentleman from Ohio (Mr.
Joyce), and I urge all of my colleagues to support it as well.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this legislation. I think it is good,
solid bipartisan legislation that is necessary, and I yield back the
balance of my time.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to recognize today that we
lose some institutional knowledge at the Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee, specifically the Water Resources and
Environment Subcommittee. Today is the last hurrah on the floor as we
lose our longtime staff director, John Anderson, to the outside world.
John is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina. He joined the
Memphis District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in early 1970 as a
biologist. Later, he moved on to the Savannah District and finally to
the Army Corps of Engineers headquarters here in Washington, D.C.
John joined the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in
1999 on detail from the Corps, and he never left. In 2005, he was
promoted to staff director of the Subcommittee on Water Resources and
Environment.
In John's more than 40 years of service to the Nation, he has in some
fashion, either at the Corps level or here in Congress, been part of
every single WRDA law since 1990. He is widely respected in the world
of transportation and infrastructure policy and is a renowned expert in
the Nation's water resources policy.
We wish John the best in his departure from Congress. He and his
wife, Guiomar, are the proud parents of three boys: John Alexander,
Patrick, and Richard Anderson. They are also the proud grandparents of
three Anderson grandchildren.
It has been a privilege to work with John Anderson in my last 4 years
as the chairman of the subcommittee. I wish him well and thank him.
Good luck.
I also urge support of the bill.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GIBBS. I yield to the gentleman from New York.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. I, too, want to add a word of both thanks and
congratulations to John Anderson for his service in the Congress over a
great many years. I came to see firsthand his skill and dedication when
we were working so cooperatively together on passing the Water
Resources Development Act of 2013. His involvement was essential.
That bill stands as one of the few substantive pieces of bipartisan
legislation that this Congress has passed, and we were able to get it
in done in part because of John's efforts.
I thank you, and I wish you a well-earned retirement.
Mr. GIBBS. Reclaiming my time, I would also be remiss not to say a
few words about my good friend, Mr. Bishop from Long Island, New York.
It has been a privilege having you serve as my ranking member on the
subcommittee for the last 4 years. I wish you well in your endeavors in
the future.
Mr. BISHOP of New York. I appreciate that very much.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
[[Page H8897]]
Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative Act, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in
voting for this needed legislation.
In Michigan, we're blessed to be surrounded by the Great Lakes. In so
many ways, the Lakes define our state, and our region, as well. For
many years, though, we did not treat them as if they were very great.
For the better part of a century, the Lakes and their tributaries were
polluted to the point that they were dying.
A century of environmental harm cannot be undone overnight, but we've
made considerable progress. That's where the Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative comes in. Through the GLRI, we are finally addressing
longstanding problems, such as toxic hotspots, invasive species like
the Asian carp, habitat restoration, and runoff pollution.
The GLRI was created by the Obama Administration and, since 2010,
Congress has wisely funded it. Now it is time for Congress to take the
next step and formally authorize this vital program. Congress must
remain a full partner in the restoration effort in the Great Lakes, and
authorizing GLRI is the best way to do that.
I wish to acknowledge the efforts of my colleagues who have worked so
hard to support GLRI over the last five years, especially
Representative Joyce, Louise Slaughter, and my good friend John
Dingell. I would also like to underscore the longstanding efforts of
Senator Carl Levin and his staff in the area of Great Lakes
restoration.
As we continue to make meaningful progress on restoration of the
Great Lakes, this will be a hopeful sign that other difficult
environmental redemptions are also achievable. Let us move forward
together today by passing the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act.
Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, as a co-Chair of the House Great Lakes
Task Force, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5764, The Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative Act.
This bipartisan legislation authorizes the popular Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative. This program is critical to restoring and
protecting the Great Lakes, which hold over 20 percent of the world's
surface freshwater and are the source of drinking water, jobs, and
recreation for millions of Americans.
I have represented districts that span the southern coast of Lake
Ontario all the way to the City of Buffalo on Lake Erie and I know
first hand the special bond the people of the Great Lakes basin share
with these lakes. These magnificent bodies of water are truly unique
and we must do all that we can to protect these national treasures for
future generations. I urge my colleagues to support the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gibbs) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 5764.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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