[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Page 15970]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Lee, the following statement was ordered to be 
printed in the Record.)

               RECOGNIZING THE TAMPA BAY ESTUARY PROGRAM

 Mr. RUBIO. Mr. President, today I recognize and commend the 
Tampa Bay Estuary Program and its historic milestone in exceeding a 23-
year goal by restoring more than 40,000 acres of sea grass in Tampa 
Bay. This outstanding accomplishment represents the great collaborative 
work to restore one of the greatest treasures this Nation has to offer, 
Florida's Gulf Coast. The improved estuary will have an immeasurable 
impact on the future of the State's environment and economy.
  Since its establishment in 1991, the Tampa Bay Estuary Program has 
partnered with the Southwest Florida Water Management District and 
other state and local municipalities and local businesses to restore 
and protect Florida's largest open water estuary. As the Tampa Bay 
region is home to a population of more than 2 million people, this 
valuable estuary serves as a diverse ecosystem for plant and wildlife 
and is an economic driver for the region.
  After decades of voluntary effort, I am proud to learn how successful 
the Tampa Bay Estuary Program was in its environmental restoration by 
exceeding its original goal in recovering seagrass, to improve fish and 
wildlife populations, and to maintain the highest quality of water 
since the 1950s. From 2012 until 2014, the Tampa Bay Estuary Program's 
efforts were able to restore 5,000 acres of life-sustaining underwater 
grasses in Tampa Bay, which now total 40,295 acres of seagrasses. This 
amount significantly surpasses its original goal set in 1995 of 
harboring 38,000 acres.
  Although Tampa and its surrounding cities have seen an increase in 
population since 1950, the Tampa Bay Estuary Program's Nitrogen 
Management Consortium, which includes local governments and agencies 
supporting voluntary environmental recovery, has invested over $500 
million since the 1990s. The strategy developed by the Consortium 
continues to set standards that could serve as a model for and be 
implemented across the nation in other estuary recovery programs.
  I am proud that the Tampa Bay Estuary Program aided in recovering sea 
grass in Florida's Tampa Bay. I whole heartedly commend the Tampa Bay 
Estuary Program on its accomplishments over the past 23 years and wish 
it further success in its continued endeavors to protect our natural 
resources.

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