Doc Hastings

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, in many respects, this bill epitomizes the problems that those of us have in the West. This is a simple boundary change to something that was designated here on the Federal level. It has taken a great deal of time, and the impacts will be great for the economy in that area. As I mentioned in my opening remarks, this has broad support from all of the local groups and local environmental groups, as the gentleman from Oregon said. Sadly, the frustration that we continue to have when we're trying to move legislation like this to help the local job economy in these areas is that you have national groups that don't live in those areas opposing it. And that's what frustrates us, because when you get people, especially on the local level, that support this, it's frustrating when have you a national group that says, Just because we're dealing with national land, we want to have a say in all of this. A big sense of frustration for us. So I commend my friend from Oregon for moving this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

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 this bill under consideration.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to start this debate by defining clearly what H.R. 2512, the Three Kids Mine Remediation and Reclamation Act, does. This bill will create jobs, clean up an abandoned mine that is the responsibility of the United States Government, and represents a tremendous win-win for all the parties involved in this effort. The Three Kids Mine is located in Clark County, Nevada, adjacent to the City of Henderson. The mine was operated from 1916 until 1961. From 1942 to 1955, the United States Government, through the Defense Plant Corporation, owned 446 acres of the Three Kids Mine Project site. The mine site was used to produce federally owned manganese ore for national defense purposes and was leased to the U.S. until 2003 to stockpile those nodules. The total 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 that include the mill site and the former processing site. The City of Henderson, the Henderson Redevelopment Agency, Nevada Department of Environmental Protection, Lakemoor Development, LLC, 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 lands. The site is contaminated with arsenic, lead, and other heavy metals and petroleum hydrocarbons. Cost estimates for cleanup and reclamation at the site range from $300 million to over $1 billion. The lower cost estimates apply to onsite remediation and disposal of tailings and other minerals in the open pits if it can be accomplished without contaminating groundwater. The higher cost estimate is associated with offsite disposal of the contaminated material. The purchase price of the Federal lands would be adjusted to reflect the actual cleanup costs of the Federal and non-Federal land where the Federal Government has environmental liability resulting from the mill, the processing facilities, and the storage of Federal-owned manganese nodules. The City of Henderson and the developer would absolve the Federal Government if any liability arises for this site. 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 a beneficial use--all at no cost to the American taxpayer. This should provide a framework for other abandoned mine sites that are near or adjacent to small towns in larger urban areas. That's why this legislation is needed and that's why I urge my colleagues to support this, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the author of this important piece of legislation, the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Heck).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge adoption of the bill.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3263) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to allow the storage and conveyance of nonproject water at the Norman project in Oklahoma, and for other purposes.

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. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 3263, introduced by our colleague from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole), allows the Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District to store water purchased from Oklahoma City in Lake Thunderbird. This legislation is necessary since Federal regulations do not allow water transfers from out-of-basin areas unless Congress expressly authorizes such a transfer. This bill specifically states that any cost associated with its enactment will be borne by the project beneficiary. It is a no-nonsense bill that will provide additional water storage during times of drought. I thank Congressman Cole for sponsoring this commonsense bill, and I urge adoption of the measure. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the sponsor of this legislation, the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I have one more speaker.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield such time as he may consume to another Member from Oklahoma, the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lankford).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge adoption of the measure.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 241) to authorize the conveyance of certain National Forest System lands in the Los Padres National Forest in California, 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. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 241 authorizes the Forest Service to convey, for appraised market value, approximately 5 acres of the Los Padres National Forest to the White Lotus Foundation. Due to steep topography, there is limited access to the White Lotus Foundation other than a short access road that crosses Forest Service land. This bill would allow the foundation to acquire this parcel and ensure public access to their facility. So I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, as authored by our colleague from California (Mr. Gallegly), and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the author of this legislation, the gentleman from California (Mr. Gallegly).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge adoption of the measure.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 292) to resolve the claims of the Bering Straits Native Corporation and the State of Alaska to land adjacent to Salmon Lake in the State of Alaska and to provide for the conveyance to the Bering Straits Native Corporation of certain other public land in partial satisfaction of the land entitlement of the Corporation under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.

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, S. 292 ratifies the Salmon Lake Area Ownership and Consolidation Agreement signed in 2007 by the State of Alaska, the United States, and the Bering Straits Native Corporation. The agreement resolves overlapping claims to certain public lands by the State of Alaska, the United States, and the Bering Straits Native Corporation. The claims arose from the implementation of the Alaska Statehood Act of 1958 and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971. Though similar legislation sponsored by the gentleman from Alaska, and the sponsor in the House of this bill, Mr. Young, passed by 410 0 in the 111th Congress, the Committee on Natural Resources undertook regular order on S. 292, including a hearing in the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs, and a markup in the full committee, which reported the bill out favorably. I am unaware of any opposition to S. 292, and so I urge full House support for the motion to suspend the rules and pass this bill today. With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield as much time as he may consume to the author of the legislation that the last Congress passed, the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young).

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I urge adoption of this legislation and yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington

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, S. 363, introduced by Senator Wicker from Mississippi, would authorize the Secretary of Commerce to convey less than 1 acre of property owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association to the City of Pascagoula, Mississippi. This would improve the operations of the NOAA science center and give the city river access and space for a park. The bill specifies that a land conveyance could occur provided that the United States receives at least the fair market value for the property or in-kind exchange. The city and the agency have identified properties to exchange, and therefore, both parties are in agreement. S. 363 would simply allow them to go forward with this land exchange, so I urge its adoption. I reserve the balance of my time.