Kill these dirty water amendments

Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas the Senate is likely to consider the FY 2012 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. A short public notice process is being used for several amendments to the bill and four of them related to Clean Water and Rivers are listed below.

Amendments 975 and 976 were both drafted by our Missouri Senators and are short-sighted and unnecessary. The Missouri River Fish and Wildlife Recovery Project is designed to restore a significant portion of the 522,000 acres of floodplain and river lost during the Corps decades of navigation channelization of the river. The majority  of  floodplain losses that the Project would restore will be within Missouri, resulting in reduced flood damages and providing new areas for recreation and the jobs to construct and maintain them. Our Senator’s proposed $50 million reduction in Amendment 975  would severely constrict progress on this necessary project. As noted below in the Amendment 976 discussion, there are existing laws that assist the process for disaster remediation. Circumventing those laws could result in perpetuating previous bad flood-related decisions by disallowing proper evaluations of current conditions and the use of new and better methods for reducing flood risk and damages.

The Missouri Coalition for the Environment opposes each of these amendments and request that people immediately contact their Senator to voice their opposition to these amendments.

The following link will send you to the Senate Contact page: http://www.senate.gov/reference/common/faq/How_to_contact_senators.htm

Amendment No. 939 – Weakens Fundamental Clean Water Act Protections Leaving Millions of Acres of Wetlands and Thousands of Miles of Streams at Risk

Filed by Senators Barraso (R-WY) and Heller (R-NV)

This rider would block the Army Corps of Engineers from clarifying which streams and wetlands are protected by the Clean Water Act.  This jeopardizes the drinking water for 117 million Americans and may leave millions of acres of wetlands and thousands of miles of rivers and streams without Clean Water Act protections from pollution and filling.  Wetlands filter polluted water, reduce the risk of flooding, and provide important wildlife habitat serving as nurseries, incubators and buffets for fish, amphibians, and waterfowl.  Missouri has already lost more than 94% of its historic wetlands. Small and irregularly flowing streams are essential for clean water, flood protection, and wildlife habitat. In Missouri, small and irregular flowing streams have important connections to groundwater and are critical for recharging both deep and shallow underground water supplies. Excluding these waters from clean water standards adds up to more pollution in our water and more costs to taxpayers, citizens, and businesses. We cannot afford this amendment.

Amendment No. 975 – Cuts $50 Million in Restoration Funding for the Missouri River

Filed by Senators Blunt (R-MO) and McCaskill (D-MO)

This rider would cut $50 million from the funding levels for the Missouri River Fish and Wildlife Recovery Project which is the primary habitat restoration program for the lower Missouri River between Sioux City and St. Louis. Congress established this project in 1986 primarily to help reverse the impacts and deterioration of fish and wildlife habitat due to the federally sponsored channelization and stabilization projects of the Pick-Sloan era.  This project is helping to reverse the decline of river wildlife by restoring historic chutes, side channels, wetlands, backwaters, and other habitat that Missouri River fish and wildlife need to survive.  The White House, House of Representatives, and Senate appropriations committee recommended funding this program at $72.89 million.

Amendment No. 976 – Exempts Locks and Dam Projects Damaged by Disasters from Environmental Reviews

Filed by Senators Blunt (R-MO) and McCaskill (D-MO)

This rider would exempt the rebuilding of any levee, lock or dam damaged by natural disasters from a variety of environmental reviews, including the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act and all laws, regulations, and executive orders relating to the protection of wetlands.  Special rules already exist for expediting post-disaster rebuilding, including alternative schedules for complying with environmental laws when the normal compliance schedules would put the public at risk.  Effective planning requires careful consideration of alternatives to rebuilding to pre-disaster specifications to protect the public and critical resources, and compliance with the rules and policies designed to protect wetlands and the fish and wildlife that depend on them.

Amendment No. 1003 – Exempts Pesticide Use from Clean Water Act Requirements

Filed by Senator Roberts (R-KS)

This rider would permanently exempt pesticide application from the Clean Water Act’s requirements.  More than 1,000 waterways in the United States are known to be impaired because of pesticide pollution—and many more may be polluted but have not been sampled.  Pesticides discharged into our waterways harm fish and amphibians and contaminate drinking water supplies. This would eliminate protections for downstream fish populations and drinking water uses. Removing chemical contaminants to make water safe for drinking is expensive- and the health impacts from ingesting chemicals that are linked to cancer, reproductive damage, and other health problems has not been calculated, nor has the economic losses from impacts to recreational and commercial fisheries. Don’t let pesticides off the hook.