Washington, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives today took up the Great Lakes Legacy Reauthorization Act of 2008 (H.R. 6460), a bill to address the issue of contaminated sediment in the Great Lakes. The bill was introduced in the house by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Member Vern Ehlers (R-MI).
The following is the Floor statement of Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Ranking Member John Boozman (R-AR) from today’s consideration of H.R. 6460.
Boozman Statement
“I want to first commend our colleague from Michigan, Dr. Vern Ehlers, for his years of work with stakeholders from the Great Lakes to advance the Great Lakes Legacy Act.
“The Great Lakes are a vital resource for both the United States and Canada. The Great Lakes system provides a waterway to move goods; water supply for drinking, industrial, and agricultural purposes; a source of hydroelectric power; and swimming and other recreational activities.
“But the industrialization and development of the Great Lakes basin over the past 200 years has had an adverse impact on the Great Lakes.
“Although safe for drinking and swimming, in many places fish caught from the Great Lakes are not safe to eat. Lake sediments, contaminated from the history of industrialization and development in the region, are one of the primary causes of this problem.
“By treaty, the United States and Canada are developing cleanup plans for the Great Lakes and for specific areas of concern.
“The Great Lakes Legacy Act, passed in 2002, has helped citizens restore the water quality of the Great Lakes by taking action to manage and clean up contaminated sediments, and to prevent further contamination.
“The Great Lakes Legacy Act authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to carry out qualified sediment remediation projects and conduct research and development of innovative approaches and techniques for the remediation of contaminated sediment in the Great Lakes.
“Legacy Act funding must be matched with at least a 35% non-federal share – encouraging local investment.
“By encouraging cooperative efforts with state and local governments, and through public-private partnerships, the Great Lakes Legacy Act has provided a better way to address the problem of contaminated sediments.
“The Great Lakes Legacy Act does not try to presume any particular type of cleanup option.
“Rather, it simply encourages stakeholders to take action and make sure that the action they take will make a real improvement to human health and the environment.
“The Great Lakes Legacy Act reflects a consensus approach to addressing sediment contamination and is strongly supported by both environmental groups and business groups in the Great Lakes region.
“The House passed H.R. 6460 earlier this month and now the Senate has returned it to us in modified form.
“As the authorization for the Great Lakes Legacy Act expires this year, it is important that we move this legislation today.
“It is a compromise bill that keeps this important program working.
“The earlier House-passed version would triple the Act’s authorization level by raising it to $150 million per year.
“I am pleased to see a more realistic spending level associated with this bill before us today.
“This current bill maintains the authorization level in existing law.
“The Act has been funded at a level between $22 million and $35 million per year, still far short of the existing $50 million annual authorization level.
“While we might like to see more money invested in cleaning up the Great Lakes, it is hard to justify tripling the authorization when Congress has not been willing to appropriate anything close to its current authorization level.
“I remain skeptical of including habitat restoration as one of the authorized purposes for these funds. By expanding this program to cover other purposes, there will be less money for the Act’s primary purpose of getting pollution out of the water.
“Nevertheless, by all measures, the Great Lakes Legacy Act has been a successful program and I support this reauthorization.
“I want to congratulate Dr. Ehlers for his hard work in bringing this legislation to the floor. He has been a tireless champion for the Great Lakes.”
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