[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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