[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 1]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 1202-1203]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  INTRODUCTION OF H.R. 168, THE GOLDEN GATE NATIONAL RECREATION AREA 
                        BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 19, 1999

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area 
(GGNRA) is a true national treasure. It provides open space and 
recreation in the midst of a densely populated urban area, and it is 
one of our Nation's most heavily used national parks. I urge my 
colleagues to support my legislation, H.R. 168, which would expand the 
boundaries of the GGNRA to include an additional 1,300 critical acres 
of land adjacent to existing GGNRA parkland.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation has the bipartisan support of the 
entire Bay Area Congressional Delegation. Joining me as cosponsors of 
this legislation are our colleagues Nancy Pelosi, Anna Eshoo, Tom 
Campbell, George Miller, Lynn Woolsey, Pete Stark, Ellen Tauscher, 
Barbara Lee, and Zoe Lofgren. 
  H.R. 168, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area Boundary 
Adjustment Act, will permit the National Park Service to acquire 
carefully selected critical natural areas in San Mateo County, 
primarily in the area around the City of Pacifica. National Park 
Service officials in the Bay Area conducted a boundary study to 
evaluate the desirability of including additional lands in and around 
Pacifica within the GGNRA. During the preparation of the Park Service 
study, a public forum was held to gather comments from area residents, 
and local input was reflected in the final study. The Pacifica City 
Council adopted a resolution endorsing the addition of these areas to 
the GGNRA. The GGNRA and the Point Reyes National Seashore Advisory 
Commission also urged the addition of these new areas to the park.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation has the strong support of local 
environmental advocacy and preservation groups. The Loma Prieta Chapter 
of the Sierra Club contacted me to express support for this important 
legislation. In a letter endorsing this bill, the Sierra Club wrote 
that ``by expanding the boundaries of the GGNRA, the legislation would 
allow acquisition of parcels which are natural extensions of the 
park.'' The letter continued that this legislation ``would protect both 
views and habitats as well as provide additional recreational 
opportunities for local residents as well as visitors to the Bay Area. 
The open spaces and the vistas from these sites are national treasures 
and it is appropriate to include them in the Golden Gate National 
Recreation Area. By including them in GGNRA, visitors to the Bay Area 
will be given a chance to experience their wonder.''
  H.R. 168 would expand the boundary of GGNRA to permit the inclusion 
of lands directly adjacent to existing parkland as well as nearby lands 
along the Pacific Ocean. The upper parcels of land offer beautiful 
vistas, sweeping coastal views, and spectacular headland scenery. 
Inclusion of these lands would also protect the important habitats of 
several species of rare or endangered plants and animals. The 
legislation offers improved access to existing trails and beach paths 
and would protect important ecosystems from encroaching development.
  The GGNRA Boundary Adjustment Act would also permit the inclusion of 
beautiful headlands along the coast into GGNRA. The coastal headlands 
of San Pedro Point, the Rockaway Headland, Northern Coastal Bluffs, and 
the Bowl & Fish would be included in the GGNRA under this legislation. 
These parcels would offer park visitors scenic panoramas up

[[Page 1203]]

and down the coast, views of tide pools and offshore rocks, sweeping 
views of GGNRA ridges to the east, as well as additional access to the 
Pacific Ocean.
  Mr. Speaker, throughout my service in Congress, I have had a strong 
interest in preserving the unique natural areas of the Peninsula. In 
the early 1980's, I fought for the inclusion in GGNRA of Sweeney Ridge, 
which includes the site from which Spanish explorers first sighted the 
San Francisco Bay in the 18th century. The ridge affords a unique 
panorama of the entire Bay. In 1984, in the face of a long and hard 
battle waged by myself and former Congressmen Leo Ryan and Phil Burton, 
the Reagan Administration acquiesced, and Sweeney Ridge became a part 
of our protected natural heritage.
  In the early 1990's, I authored and secured passage of legislation to 
add the Phleger Estate to the GGNRA. The Phleger Estate includes over a 
thousand acres of pristine second-growth redwoods and evergreen forests 
adjacent to the Crystal Springs watershed in the mid-Peninsula. The 
Federal Government paid one-half of the cost of acquiring the Phleger 
Estate. The other half of the cost was paid for through private 
contributions raised by the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST). Our 
distinguished colleague, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, played a key role in 
winning congressional approval of the Federal Government's share of the 
purchase. The Phleger Estate is now part of the GGNRA and it has become 
an important hiking and recreation area on the Peninsula.
  Mr. Speaker, preserving our country's unique natural areas must be 
one of our highest national priorities, and it is one of my highest 
priorities as a Member of Congress. We must preserve and protect these 
areas for our children and our grandchildren today or they will be lost 
forever. Adding these new lands in and around Pacifica to the GGNRA 
will allow us to protect these fragile areas from development or other 
inappropriate uses which would destroy the scenic beauty and natural 
character of this key part of the Bay Area. I urge my colleagues to 
support passage of H.R. 168, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area 
Boundary Adjustment Act.

                          ____________________