Washington, D.C. – The following is from the opening statement of U.S. Rep. John Boozman (R-AR), Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Ranking Member, from today’s hearing on reauthorization of the Chesapeake Bay Program.
Watch Rep. Boozman’s statement on YouTube.
“The EPA says the major causes of the Chesapeake Bay’s deterioration are excess nutrients and sediments coming from farmlands, wastewater treatment plants, and urban runoff. Septic systems and air deposition of emissions from power plants, cars, and trucks also contribute to the degradation.
“In the next 25 years, an additional 3.7 million people are expected to be living in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. As more concrete and asphalt replace forests and open spaces, the runoff of nutrients and sediments into the Bay will increase.
“However, it is this same growth and development that provides the economic stability for the region.
“All producers, including farmers, foresters, and fishermen, rely on water from the Chesapeake Bay watershed for their operations. Most farmers in the watershed have implemented conservation practices and nutrient management plans.
“If water quality goals are not being met, we have to be careful to not overburden producers with regulations that will yield little or no benefits. Before we create any additional mandatory programs we have to ensure our producers remain competitive.
“Again, moving the goalposts for farmers and producers without knowing if this will improve water quality may ultimately lead to these lands being used for activities other than agriculture or forestry. Those in the production industry are some of the best stewards in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Forcing producers off the land will merely lead to more concrete and more asphalt. We may just be replacing one source of pollution with another.
“The Bay region must balance economic development with the need for clean water and a healthy environment. To do this, the region needs to be smart in how it grows in the future in order to minimize the impacts on the Bay.
“Today the Chesapeake Bay Program is a partnership of states, local entities, and the EPA that directs and conducts restoration of the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake 2000 Agreement set ambitious restoration goals to be met by 2010. These goals have now been rescheduled, but the states in the watershed are taking proactive steps to reduced nutrients loadings and increase enforcement.
“There have been some clear successes taking place in our efforts to improve conditions in the Bay. Billions of taxpayer dollars have already been devoted to Bay cleanup. In some cases, this has improved wildlife habitat, bottom habitat, and tidal wetlands.
“The Administration recently issued an Executive Order to expand the role of the federal government within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The Executive Order calls for the creation of a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for the Chesapeake Bay to regulate the limits on pollutants into the Bay. In addition, the Executive Order calls for a new strategy for meeting the goals of a restored Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.
“More still needs to be done. All of the Program partners and stakeholders, at the local, state, and federal levels, need to make some hard decisions to realize a Bay region that is both environmentally and economically sustainable.”
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