The Everglades are one of our nation's most important natural treasures and we have a responsibility as a nation to preserve them, just as we do the national parks in New Jersey and elsewhere.
Senator Graham has done an outstanding job in bringing the Everglades to the attention of our Committee.
The Everglades of today are not the same place that they were in 1947. I think we can all agree that restoration of the Everglades is necessary. The current predicament of the Everglades is due in large part to mistakes that were made because we lacked the knowledge we have today about the harm that humans can impose on the natural environment.
But we must be cautious not to compound one man-made problem with another.
During the past 52 years Congress has selected choices for the Everglades based on the state of the science at the time. I am pleased to see that the Plan before us has sufficient flexibility to address new information obtained during the Implementation process. I just want to raise a few concerns.
First, how do we assure that the so-called "new" water captured under the plan will be provided to the environment in a quantity sufficient to restore the Everglades and ensure that it thrives? I was astounded to learn that, on average, 1.7 billion gallons of water that once flowed through the ecosystem is wasted every day through discharges to the ocean and gulf.
So I'm concerned that, as the demands for water increase in the future, we have protections in place to ensure that the needs of the plants and animals will continue to be met.
Secondly, how can we justify the 40-60 cost sharing for Operation and Maintenance of this project? Usually, operations and maintenance costs are the sole responsibility of the non-Federal sponsor.
In my state, the Port users and the State of New Jersey are paying 100 percent of the costs of similar public works projects in good faith. I look forward to learning more about this funding arrangement.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.