[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 16]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 22946]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        THE GREAT LAKES COMPACT

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                           HON. MARCY KAPTUR

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 26, 2008

  Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, Ohio, Michigan and the rest of the Great 
Lakes have a resource that is the envy of any nation. With 20 percent 
of the world's available freshwater, the regions water resource 
represents the key for economic and environmental sustainability. Gone 
are the days when we can take this resource for granted and trust that 
the rest of the world will not tread on us.
  My district spans 90 plus miles of coastline across Lake Erie and 
depends on the natural bounty of the Great Lakes.
  The Great Lakes Compact represents a paradox. On the one hand the 
time for action is clearly upon us, however, while this legislation 
represents a starting point, the loophole that allows the export of 
bottled water outside the basin puts the entire agreement in jeopardy.
  While the States have been reviewing this compact for years, Congress 
spent less than 20 legislative days examining this legislation. I am 
particularly concerned about the binding effect of S.J. Res. 45 and its 
broad exemption for bottled water.
  What will be the bills effects on our trade agreements? I cannot 
honestly answer that point.
  How many bottled water companies will be eligible to apply for this 
exemption removal? No one knows.
  What opportunities will there be to update or amend the legislation? 
No one can truly say.
  According to the legislation, a--``Diversion means a transfer of 
Water from the Basin into another watershed, or from the watershed of 
one of the Great Lakes into that of another by any means of transfer, 
including but not limited to a pipeline, canal, tunnel, aqueduct, 
channel, modification of the direction of a water course, a tanker 
ship, tanker truck or rail tanker . . . ''
  However, this legislation continues to describe a glaring loophole in 
the following: ``but does not apply to Water that is used in the Basin 
or a Great Lake watershed to manufacture or produce a Product that is 
then transferred out of the Basin or watershed. Divert has a 
corresponding meaning''.
  In section 4.12, this legislation allows the bulk water transfer so 
long as it is packaged in containers of less than 5.7 gallons or less. 
The legislation goes on to provide authority for jurisdictions to 
determine the treatment of Proposals to Withdraw Water and to remove it 
from the Basin in any container of 5.7 gallons or less. This provision 
to allow the regulated transfer of bottled water must not be misused 
and will be Congresses job to ensure that this does not happen.
  While I will vote against the Great Lakes compact today, I do not do 
so out of opposition to the base legislation but in an effort to slow 
down its consideration. Once this bill is signed into law, the story is 
not over. Congress must continue to use its legislative authority to 
ensure that the compact is implemented as intended.
  With strong oversight, this body must ensure that the provisions of 
the compact are used to protect the Great Lakes. Hopefully, this 
legislation is a starting point. It is the first step in protecting our 
water resource but it must not be our last. While I encourage a no vote 
on the final legislation, I do so to ensure that these concerns are 
clearly presented for the record.

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