The notion that revenues from the depletion of oil and gas resources should be reinvested into our natural resources is not a new or revolutionary idea. Congress recognized the wisdom of this idea in 1964, and passed the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act. In 1986, President Reagan's Commission On the American Outdoors reported that:
"Preservation of fast disappearing open space, investment in rehabilitation of deteriorating facilities, getting ahead of urban growth as it runs across the land -- these are actions which cannot wait, but must be taken now, for tomorrow they will be more expensive, or, in some cases, impossible."
For the past 40 years, many in and out of the federal government, have talked about the need to increase investment in the Land and Water Conservation Fund, efforts to conserve fish and wildlife, historic preservation and park restoration activities. I think we have had sufficient talk, and now is the time to act.
Immediate action is necessary because the current opportunities to conserve land and recover threatened and endangered species will not exist in 10 or 15 years. As a city council member for 4 years, and a local mayor for the past 7 years, I have witnessed firsthand the conversion of dairy farms into department stores. My experience in local government has taught me that the most critical element of controlling growth is the wise acquisition of valuable open spaces. We don't want the developers to have it all! And I am sure that this sentiment is true in every state. In fact, in 1998, over 200 ballot measures were approved across the country for green space acquisition. And this year, the State of Rhode Island has proposed a $50 million bond initiative for open space acquisition for the next 20 years. Many local and state governments desperately want to conserve and protect their precious natural resources areas. Unfortunately, existing funding is not enough to accomplish the enormous task at hand. The federal government must become involved in these efforts. If Congress fails to act, we will continue to develop some of our most precious natural areas, and we will continue to witness a decline in open space, endangered species, recreational opportunities and our quality of life. This issue is about our legacy to future generations, and our failure to act will be costly.
While I strongly support the goals of the bills before us today, I also believe that we can improve on the proposals. I urge the following principles be incorporated in any bill that passes the Senate.
State lines do not trace ecosystems and some of America's most important natural areas --- the Northern Forest of New England, the Mississippi Delta, and the Great Lakes --- are not contained in one state alone. This fact makes it difficult --- particularly for small states like those in New England --- to preserve treasures like the ones I just mentioned. The addition of a flexible funding component to the LWCF could provide additional money that could be used by an individual state for a costly project of national significance, or by a group of states for preservation of areas that spill over state boundaries.
We should also avoid creating incentives for off-shore oil drilling, and ensure that monies earned from the nation's environmental resources ought to be reinvested into other natural resources as envisioned by the original 1965 bill --- not used to build more roads or lay new sewer lines. I recognize that there are legitimate infrastructure impacts in OCS producing states that need to be addressed, but I also believe that a significant portion of the funding should be allocated towards mitigating the adverse impacts of OCS production on the environment.
We also need to make greater investments in the protection and recovery of endangered species and place greater emphasis on conservation efforts that will prevent other declining species from being added to the Threatened or Endangered lists. The value of open space is not only in the land, but also the wildlife that the land sustains. Current funding for wildlife conservation and management efforts should be increased for threatened and endangered species, and indeed for all wildlife -- game and non-game species.
I want to thank you once again Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing on such an important and timely environmental issue. I look forward to the testimony of the witnesses.