Rep. Huffman Supports Water Resources Development Act, Applauds Fisheries, Estuaries, and Dredging Improvements

May 26, 2016

Washington, D.C.- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee unanimously approved the Water Resources and Development Act (WRDA) of 2016 that includes key California and environmental priorities authored by Congressman Huffman (D-San Rafael). The bill will next head to the full House of Representatives for consideration.

The bipartisan WRDA 2016 legislation, which authorizes Army Corps of Engineers activities across the country, contains several provisions either authored or co-authored by Huffman that will modernize drought response, restore wetland restoration funding, and improve fish hatchery management. The underlying bill will also increase funding for navigation and dredging activity, a key priority for North Coast ports.

Congressman Huffman’s amendment to use existing fish hatchery capacity to restore threatened fish populations, such as the North Coast’s endangered salmon runs, was adopted without opposition during today’s committee meeting. Fish hatcheries operated by the Army Corps of Engineers often have surplus capacity and could do more to restock depleted fish populations, but under current law the agency lacks the authority to collaborate with non-federal entities on these hatchery projects. The amendment clarifies that existing Army Corps fish hatcheries could work with local and regional partners to restore native fish.

“In coastal communities such as mine, local water agencies are interested in seeing more robust native fish populations,” said Rep. Huffman. “My amendment will simply allow the Army Corps of Engineers to do more to support native fisheries in Sonoma and across the country, while ensuring that the additional costs will be borne by the partnering entities and agencies.”

Congressman Huffman also worked to include numerous other provisions in the final bill including:

  •          Estuary Restoration- the committee-passed bill included legislative language from Rep. Huffman’s bipartisan estuary restoration bill with Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA), HR 4607, which will eliminate bureaucratic impediments to funding environmentally important estuary habitat restoration projects. The changes Huffman has proposed, and which were included in the underlying WRDA bill, will improve clean water sources, support coastal economies - including fishing and shellfish industry jobs - and provide recreational opportunities for millions of Americans. The proposal is supported by Ducks Unlimited and Restore America’s Estuaries.
  •          Environmental Infrastructure- the bill also includes portions of H.R. 2689, another bipartisan bill that Rep. Huffman introduced with Rep. Mimi Walters (R-CA). The changes would clarify the ability of the Army Corps of Engineers to work on environmental infrastructure projects such as water recycling, desalination, and storm water collection.
  •          Funding for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund- the bill ensures that vital funds will be used for harbor maintenance and dredging in ports and harbors.

The bipartisan WRDA bill also includes a provision modeled on Huffman’s FORECAST Act, HR 813, to modernize reservoir operations and improve water storage opportunities. During committee consideration of a Huffman amendment to expand on that provision, Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) and the Ranking Member Peter Defazio (D-OR) promised that they would continue to work with Huffman to finalize the amendment before the legislation is considered on the House floor. Click HERE for more on the FORECAST Act and reservoir operation modernization.

With modern weather science, including satellites, the Army Corps should be able to do a much better job in determining when to release water so that they don't drain reservoirs unnecessarily. This is a desperately needed measure for anyone who depends on Army Corps reservoirs for their water supply.

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