[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 104 (Thursday, June 21, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H5502-H5503]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONSERVATION
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 3, 2017, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from California
(Mr. Lowenthal) for 14\1/2\ minutes.
Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, as I begin, I and many others have been
outraged by the President's zero-tolerance policy, so it is so
therapeutic for me to stand before you today and talk about a program
that brings us together rather than divides us. Today I rise to
celebrate the successes of the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
The LWCF is a highly successful conservation program, and it enjoys
great bipartisan support. It was created in 1964. It was a bipartisan
commitment to safeguard our natural areas, to safeguard our water
resources, and to protect and enhance our cultural heritage. We also
wanted to be able to provide for recreational opportunities for all
Americans.
It was a simple idea. It said: Use the resources from the depletion
of one resource, which was offshore oil and gas, to support the
conservation of another precious resource, our land and water.
Over its 50-year history, with no cost to taxpayers, it has provided
critical access to public lands for hunting, fishing, biking, hiking,
climbing, paddling, and many other outdoor activities that Americans
enjoy. It has protected critical watersheds, ecosystems that provide
for clean, safe drinking water, and has protected the habitat for our
wildlife. Finally, it has provided protection and access for cultural
and historic sites across our Nation.
Fifty percent of it goes to local and State grants, which help to
build and preserve local and State parks, trails, and wildlife areas.
Fifty percent in my State we have used for habitat conservation
programs and the Forest Legacy Program. The other 50 percent goes to
support access and conservation in and around our U.S. public land.
So, for example, in my district or near my district, really near my
district, we have places like the Channel Islands National Park, Joshua
Tree National Park, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area,
and Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge. They all benefit from the Land
and Water.
I would like to say that where we are is that we have a bill now. We
finally must deal with the reauthorization, and we have a bill, H.R.
502, that reauthorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and it has
the support of 35 Republicans and 194 Democrats. Mr. Speaker, it must
be reauthorized before September 30. I ask that you bring it to the
floor of the House because it will have overwhelming support.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Kilmer).
Mr. KILMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today just to join my colleagues in urging the
House to reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund before it
expires this September.
I think former Senator ``Scoop'' Jackson said it best when he
introduced the legislation to create this fund nearly a half century
ago. He said Americans ``go to the open areas.'' The LWCF is what helps
ensure we have open areas in our community where the next generation
can gather.
People in my neck of the woods have 600 more open areas to go to in
Washington State thanks to the Land and Water Conservation Fund's $600
million investment in our region. The Land and Water Conservation Fund
has helped build parks in places like Tacoma and has helped protect
forestland in Kitsap and Mason Counties, without a cost to taxpayers.
Folks come to our region to visit unique places supported by the Land
and Water Conservation Fund, and then they stick around to spend some
money at our local shops and restaurants. So by investing in the Land
and Water Conservation Fund, Congress supports jobs and small
businesses. This is good for our economy.
Congress gets a lot for their money when they invest in the Land and
Water Conservation Fund. This money helps communities attract private
dollars from multiple sources to accomplish big goals. It is the glue
that holds these big projects together.
I would like to highlight a couple of the projects that have had a
big impact in my neck of the woods.
The South Puget Sound Coastal Forest Legacy Project is a partnership
between The Trust for Public Land and Green Diamond Resources Company
that will help protect nearly 10,000 acres of working forestlands along
the Hood Canal. Keeping this land off-limits to development will help
maintain working forest jobs and recreational access to Mason County
trails. It will also protect, roughly, 1,400 acres of shellfish beds
that serve more than 20 shellfish companies and 2,000 recreational and
Tribal harvesters.
The Salt Creek Recreation Area is another great example of what local
communities can achieve thanks to support from the LWCF. I grew up just
down the road from Salt Creek, so I can tell you firsthand what a
difference this park has made for our region. In fact, I took my kiddos
there for an amazing day last summer. From the tide pools and sandy
beaches to the panoramic views, it is no wonder this park has become a
key driver of our growing recreational economy. That project would not
have become a reality without the relatively small--just $250,000--but
vital investment from the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
But the LWCF isn't just about creating opportunity in rural
communities; it supports recreational opportunities in urban areas as
well. Take the Kandle Park and Pool in Tacoma.
Less than a decade ago, this park was just an empty field with a
dilapidated playground; but thanks to support from the LWCF, this park
hosts a modern aquatics facility and sports fields that provide a safe,
fun, and screen-free place for kids to spend their time.
So in my Washington, what I consider the better Washington, we have
seen firsthand that the LWCF grows jobs, supports rural economies, and
connects our urban communities to the outdoors.
So that is what is on the line. At a time when we are starving for
bipartisanship in this place, look no further than H.R. 502. Mr.
Speaker, 229 Members, Democrats and Republicans, have cosponsored this.
We have 100 days to get it done. I hope that we get this done.
Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Cartwright).
Mr. CARTWRIGHT. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from California for
yielding.
When I think of California and I think of conservation, I think of
John Muir, the father of our national forests and the founder of the
Sierra Club. We have a lot to be proud of in California in John Muir.
His final resting place was there.
But when I think of conservation, I also think of a wonderful
Pennsylvanian conservationist by the name of Gifford Pinchot. Gifford
Pinchot was a noted Republican and Progressive conservationist to make
Pennsylvania proud. He was the Governor of Pennsylvania twice. He was
the first Chief of the United States Forest Service. Above all, he was
a pioneer in the American conservation movement. It makes me proud to
be from northeastern Pennsylvania where for many, many years Gifford
Pinchot lived.
[[Page H5503]]
Mr. Speaker, the Land and Water Conservation Fund's authorization
expires on September 30. This vital program, which has broad bipartisan
and bicameral support, should be made permanent and should be fully
funded.
I am proud to support H.R. 502, which permanently authorizes the Land
and Water Conservation Fund. It has bipartisan support from 231
cosponsors in the House. Over 30 Republican House Members recently
wrote to leadership expressing their support for reauthorizing the Land
and Water Conservation Fund this year.
LWCF plays an instrumental role in preserving and protecting our
precious drinking water, safeguarding our natural resources, and
providing pristine outdoor recreational spaces to millions of
Americans, all while creating jobs and supporting local economies.
Stakeholders work together to leverage LWCF funding with other State,
local, and private funds to make the most out of every LWCF dollar
spent. Without these Federal funds sparking the investment, we would
never amass the resources needed to protect critical tracts of land.
LWCF funds are almost always the critical piece of a puzzle that
allows precious land to be forever protected and preserved. It is the
funds from offshore gas and oil revenue that provide the funding for
LWCF, not taxpayer dollars.
We all benefit greatly from the LWCF and the lands that it protects.
The outdoor recreation economy generates $1 trillion per year and
supports 7.6 million American jobs. In my district alone, outdoor
recreation accounts for well over $1 billion a year. It is a sector
that also annually generates $65.3 billion in Federal tax revenue and
$59.2 billion in State and local tax revenue.
Our Federal investment in these historic, cultural, and recreational
landmarks and wildlife habitats generates a substantial return to the
American taxpayer.
As we speak, LWCF is making a dramatic difference in my own district.
We have worked for years to find the funds to take advantage of a once-
in-a-lifetime opportunity to purchase and preserve a beautiful piece of
land in the Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge. LWCF helped
leverage funding from State, local, and private sources, but without
LWCF, this land would have been lost forever. I worked very hard in the
Appropriations Committee to make sure the LWCF had enough money
to acquire the full 2,931 acres in Cherry Valley.
But we shouldn't have to work this hard for every LWCF dollar. We
should be dedicating more money and permanently reauthorizing the LWCF
to complete more projects like Cherry Valley.
From historic battlefields like Gettysburg to the very home of
Gifford Pinchot--Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford,
Pennsylvania--LWCF is providing critical funding to protect our most
important lands. It has wide-ranging bipartisan support, and it is past
time that we permanently reauthorize LWCF and give it the robust
funding that it so richly deserves.
Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the State
of Virginia (Mr. McEachin).
Mr. McEACHIN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to associate myself with the
comments of my colleagues about the importance of our Nation's premier
outdoor recreation and conservation program, the Land and Water
Conservation Fund.
Over the past five decades, LWCF has helped protect our Nation's most
treasured places, including many in my congressional district like the
Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and both the Richmond and
Petersburg National Battlefields.
As we know, authorization of LWCF is set to expire in 100 short days.
That is why the timing of this Special Order hour is so critical. If
Congress does not reauthorize LWCF, we will lose one of our most
powerful tools for protecting our Nation's natural, historical, and
cultural landmarks. If that happens, every State and district in our
country will feel the damaging consequences.
That outcome is unacceptable, which is why I am proud to cosponsor
H.R. 502, which is Ranking Member Grijalva's legislation to permanently
reauthorize LWCF. I also support robust funding for LWCF in the
appropriations bills.
For my constituents, preserving our lands and waters is personal.
Virginia's Fourth Congressional District is home to many beautiful
public lands and waters, along with many other sites that still need to
be protected.
{time} 2145
Earlier this month, I toured the beautiful James River National
Wildlife Refuge with local nonprofits to highlight the need to
reauthorize the LWCF. My tour reminded me that there is no place quite
like the James, but my district is far from unique. Across our
district, LWCF has helped conserve precious ecosystems that wildlife,
people, and local economies needed to survive.
While preserving these lands is the right thing to do, it also makes
good business sense. In fact, outdoor recreation generates billions of
dollars for the Commonwealth's economy.
The same dynamic applies across the country. That is why I intend to
keep up the fight to reauthorize the LWCF. It helps communities protect
the places they love, and we owe it to our children and our children's
children to keep this tool in place.
Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York
(Mr. Tonko).
Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
This week marks 100 days until the expiration of the Land and Water
Conservation Fund authorization.
The LWCF has assisted New York State in many, many ways over its 50
years to protect some of New York's most special places and ensure
recreational access for hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities.
Both the House and Senate have currently introduced bipartisan bills
to permanently reauthorize the LWCF. I am a proud cosponsor of the
House bill, H.R. 502, and I urge the House leadership to bring it up
for a vote.
Some examples of special places in New York's 20th Congressional
District include Thatcher Park in Albany, Frear Park development in
Troy, the bike-hike trail in Glenville, Schenectady, Niskayuna, Peebles
Island, Congress Park in Saratoga, and Mohawk Mills Park in Amsterdam.
Mr. LOWENTHAL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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