[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 113 (Thursday, June 18, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E547]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  UPON THE RETIREMENT OF DEBRAH MARRIOTT AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE 
                   LOWER COLUMBIA ESTUARY PARTNERSHIP

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 18, 2020

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Madam Speaker, it is with mixed emotions that I 
congratulate Deb Marriott, the founding and long-time Executive 
Director of the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, on her well-
deserved retirement. For twenty-five years, Deb has very capably led 
the Estuary Partnership to educate youth, restore Columbia River 
ecosystems, and advocate for culturally appropriate, science-based 
management. She has proven to be a committed and collaborative partner 
for Tribes, schools, shippers, and fishing communities, as well as 
municipalities along the Columbia. And she has left the River, and its 
communities, all the better through her work.
  Deb was instrumental in designing--and ultimately helping to pass 
into law in 2016--the Columbia River Basin Restoration Act, legislation 
that I and fellow Oregon colleagues created to reduce toxics in the 
Columbia. She worked to bring people together around a common theme--
cleaning up the river--and kept true to the science. This is just one 
example of her work; throughout the years she has developed a 
reputation for honesty, hard work, and exceptional quality, and that 
standing has been passed on to the Estuary Partnership. The resiliency 
of so many on-the ground projects, the result of many long hours and 
much collaboration with partners, and of the National Estuary Program 
itself, show Deb's meaningful mark on the River and its communities for 
generations to come.
  Issues of salmon recovery and watershed protection are not always the 
easiest in the Pacific Northwest, yet I have known Deb to be not just a 
tireless advocate, but also a skilled listener. Whether it has been 
through work with Tribes, politicians and agency officials, volunteers, 
students, or any number of other stakeholders, Deb has always kept her 
eyes on the bigger picture.
  Her work has played a tremendous role in connecting people to this 
special part of our amazing planet. I thank Deb from the bottom of my 
heart, for her decades of service. I wish her the best in a well-
deserved retirement.

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