Doc Hastings

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, S. 459 would authorize an agency-to-agency conveyance of Federal lands to allow for the expansion of the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site in South Dakota. The U.S. Air Force administered over 1,000 Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles in silos throughout the Central States. These sites played a critical national security role until they were deactivated following the end of the Cold War. The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site was established by Congress in 1999 to recognize the importance of the Minuteman ICBM program. S. 459 would convey just under 30 acres of the Buffalo Gap National Grassland to allow for the establishment of a visitor facility, administrative site, and a parking lot. This is good legislation, Mr. Speaker, and I urge its adoption. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I, too, have no more speakers, and so I urge its adoption. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, as we come back after our August district work period, there have been several major events that have happened and generally do happen in late summer in the western part of the United States. Those events generally revolve around forest fires. I'm joined on the floor tonight by a number of my colleagues from the western part of the United States in whose districts we've experienced some of these forest fires. But the reason we wanted to have this time, Mr. Speaker, is because this issue about forest management that I'm going to get into and my colleagues will be getting into has been building up for some time. I have the privilege to chair the House Natural Resources Committee. We have broad jurisdiction over all Federal lands, and that certainly includes our forested lands. And what I have observed in the time that I've had the privilege to be in this body is that our national forests are being badly mismanaged, particularly on Federal lands. They're being badly mismanaged generally because of events and regulations coming from the Federal Government. We'll talk about that a bit tonight. But there is a solution to what we will be discussing tonight for the problems we've had in the western part of the United States with these forest fires--and that's the Healthy Forest Act that we'll have on the floor, hopefully, later on this month. As the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, I have always felt that all Federal lands, unless otherwise designated, should be for multiple purposes. That includes recreation, that includes commercial activity, and that includes whatever activity would be allowed unless Congress otherwise designates. And those designations could be national parks, they could be wilderness areas, they could be national monuments. But unless Congress otherwise designates, these areas should be for multiple purposes. In many respects, that goes to the crux of the problem that we'll be talking about tonight: the high incidence of forest fires on our Federal lands. What we propose in the Healthy Forest Act that I hope will be on the floor here later this month and has passed out of committee by a voice vote is that on Federal lands where there is multiple purpose, there should be target dates for harvesting timber. If one looks at timber like any other commercial crop, the only difference is timber harvests happen in a longer period of time--generally, 30 to 40 years. But you should still manage that crop. That means thinning and doing all the things you do with any other commercial crop. This hasn't been done. As a result, this has led to these catastrophic forest fires that we've had. I know there will be a chart on the floor later on that shows when you reduce harvests, the incidence of wildfires goes up dramatically. But it's gotten to the point where it's getting into the taxpayers' pocket. It's getting into the taxpayers' pocket because when we were properly managing land some 30 years or more ago, for every dollar that the Federal Government spent on managing our forest lands, $2 would come back in return, generally from the revenue that was realized because of harvesting. But now, Mr. Speaker, that ratio is exactly reversed. For every $2 spend, we only get $1 back. As a result, it is getting into the pocket of the taxpayer when we're running these trillion-dollar deficits. Where we could have a positive cash flow, we don't have a positive cash flow. So the response to that is to set target dates in various forests for how much timber should be harvested. Now, Mr. Speaker, this is not just on the Federal level where there would be a benefit. There is a benefit also to local communities within various counties that are heavily timbered on Federal forest lands. Back some 100 years ago, when we were looking at using these forests as national assets, there was a promise by the Federal Government to give local counties 25 percent of the revenue that they got for timber. This was their source of income, and it worked well for some 80 years. But because of the regulations that I mentioned in my brief opening remarks, and particularly in the Northwest, and particularly in Washington, Oregon, and in northern California, because of the Endangered Species Act--and specifically within the Endangered Species Act, the spotted owl--timber harvests have dropped off dramatically. That means these counties have lost their revenue. In fact, in Washington, Oregon, and California, in the last 20 years, timber harvest has fallen by 90 percent on Federal lands; and so, as a result, those counties that relied on the revenue from forest activity simply don't have any other means of income. Unfortunately, that's one of those issues that needs to be addressed. We do address that in the Healthy Forests Act by allowing counties to manage these Federal forests and get a return as they did--it started some 100 years ago--of 25 percent of the harvest. So these are issues that we will be discussing tonight, some in more detail, how they affect individual districts. And we hope to have this bill on the floor, as I mentioned, later on this month. It did pass out of committee, by the way, on a voice vote. I think that is significant. I think more and more people are understanding the need to properly manage our forests. Now, Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize first a gentleman whose district was heavily impacted. We all heard about the forest fires surrounding Yosemite National Park. So, Mr. Speaker, I want to yield back my time but recognize the gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to have my name removed as a cosponsor of H. Res. 319. It was put on that resolution inadvertently.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 697) to provide for the conveyance of certain Federal land in Clark County, Nevada, for the environmental remediation and reclamation of the Three Kids Mine Project Site, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 697, the Three Kids Mine Remediation and Reclamation Act, was introduced by our colleague from Nevada (Mr. Heck) on Valentine's Day and was marked up on June 12 of this year. The Three Kids Mine is located in Clark County, Nevada, adjacent to the city of Henderson. The mine was operated from 1916 to 1961. The United States, through the Defense Plant Corporation, owned 446 acres of the Three Kids Mine Project from 1942 to 1955. The mine site was used to produce federally owned manganese ore for national defense purposes and was leased by the U.S. until 2003 to stockpile manganese nodules. The Three Kids Mine Project area is approximately 1,262 acres and includes 948 acres of Federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation, and 314 acres of private lands where the mill site and processing plant are located. The site is contaminated with arsenic, lead, and other heavy metals and petroleum hydrocarbons. Cost estimates for cleanup and reclamation of the site range from $300 million to $1.2 billion. The city of Henderson, the Henderson Redevelopment Agency, the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection, Lakemoor Development, and the Bureau of Land Management have negotiated a plan to clean up and redevelop the Three Kids Mine Project site that includes the purchase of 948 acres of Federal land. The purchase price would be adjusted to reflect the actual cleanup cost of the Federal and non-Federal lands where the Federal Government has environmental liability resulting from the mill, from the processing facilities, and the storage of Federal- owned manganese nodules. All in all, Mr. Speaker, this is a win-win for everyone involved. The environmental problems are addressed, the abandoned mine site is reclaimed, and the land redeveloped for beneficial use--all at no cost to the American taxpayer. If successful, this could provide a framework for other abandoned mine sites that are near or adjacent to small towns and larger urban areas. So I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, which passed by voice vote in the last Congress, and I would hope it would do so again in this Congress. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 4 minutes to the author of this legislation, who introduced it in the last Congress and in this Congress, the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Heck).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I would ask my friend from California, I have no more requests for time and I'm prepared to yield back if the gentleman is prepared to yield back.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I am prepared to close.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, as was mentioned, this is a win-win proposition--at no cost to the taxpayer--cleaning up this mine, and I urge its support. It passed, again, by voice vote in the last Congress, and I hope it does so again in this Congress. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes,'' and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1411) to include the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands in the California Coastal National Monument as a part of the National Landscape Conservation System, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 1411 would add 1,255 acres of the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands to the California Coastal National Monument, which was created by Presidential Proclamation 7264 in January of 2000. The Stornetta family, the namesake of this area being annexed into the monument, grazes cattle in this area, so it is imperative that grazing continues and is compatible with the long-term protection and management of the monument. Public land grazers in Arizona, Montana, and Utah have already been targeted by a few antigrazing zealots who want to litigate to extinction the legitimate and long-standing practice of grazing in national monuments. During committee consideration of H.R. 1411, an amendment was adopted to ensure that traditional economic activities and uses, such as grazing, will be allowed to continue once the Point Arena-Stornetta Public Lands are added to the California Coastal National Monument. It also limited future land acquisitions to only those done by donations or exchange, thereby preventing any unnecessary taxpayer expense. Private property rights were also protected by ensuring motorized vehicle access to any non-Federal lands within the monument and requiring written consent from the landowners before their property can be included in the monument. The bill includes provisions preventing restrictions on military or commercial low-level overflights and training activities, and also on Department of Homeland Security law enforcement activities, other routine provisions protecting activities outside of the designation, and prohibiting the creation of buffer zones. I think these conditions are the right conditions when you take land for other uses, and I support this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I have no more requests for time. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, this is a good piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to adopt it, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Chairman, nuclear weapons production played a pivotal role in our Nation's defense for decades, helping to end the Second World War and to end the Cold War. Implementing these programs resulted in a large volume of radioactive waste that the Federal Government has a legal responsibility to clean up. Today, there are indications that nuclear waste is leaking out of the underground tanks at Hanford in my congressional district, with higher levels of contamination now being detected in the surrounding soil. The amendment that I offer, Mr. Chairman, would restore a portion of the reduction for the Environmental Management program that would so greatly impact the Richland Operations Office and help enable the cleanup to move forward safely, efficiently, and in a timely manner.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I would be happy to yield to the subcommittee chairman.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Reclaiming my time, Mr. Chairman, thank you for your support for this amendment and for your position on Yucca Mountain in the underlying bill, which is the ultimate solution for Hanford's high-level tank waste. I would like to remind the chairman, I am meeting with Secretary Moniz later this week, and I will reiterate the need for this information that you have just outlined for WTP. I also recognize the discrepancy in allocations between the House and Senate bills. I want to ask the gentleman: How do you anticipate that these differences will be resolved, particularly as they pertain to EM, in the event of a continuing resolution? I yield to the chairman.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Reclaiming my time, Mr. Chairman, I hope we don't get to a CR, but thank you very much for that information. At this time, I would like to yield to my colleague from southwest Washington (Ms. Herrera Beutler), the gentlelady from the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I thank the gentlelady for her remarks. Again, I urge adoption of this amendment because this is a legal obligation. With that, Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.