[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2060]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         SUPPORT FUNDING FOR GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE

  (Mr. HIGGINS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, on the occasion of Great Lakes Day, 
hundreds of advocates are in Washington to support funding for the 
restoration of the Great Lakes.
  Fortunately, after years of neglect, Congress is starting to meet its 
responsibilities to protect and to restore this irreplaceable resource.
  In 1968, the Buffalo River, which drains into Lake Erie, was so 
contaminated that it was declared biologically dead.
  Today, funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, the Federal 
Government, local businesses, and the Buffalo Niagara RIVERKEEPER are 
working on a massive undertaking to clean up and restore the river. Now 
we expect it will be fishable and swimmable within the next decade.
  In the coming weeks, Congress will begin to devise its spending plan 
for the year. I urge my colleagues to support programs like the Great 
Lakes Restoration Initiative, which support local economies, natural 
habitats, and public health throughout the region.

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