Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. McNerney). Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, my region has much of the delta; I would say most of it. I am very concerned about saltwater intrusion with these new provisions. Saltwater is not something that you can drink. You can't do much with it. It is a problem. It is easy to sympathize--and I do--with the farmers and communities south of the delta, but we shouldn't just pass the problem from one region to another. We don't need to do this. We can develop recycling. Israel recycles 90 percent of their water. California recycles 15 percent. We can capture urban and suburban storm water. We can stop water leakage. We can reduce evaporative losses. We can start groundwater banking. We can create regional self-sufficiency, which will reduce reliance on the delta water and solve all these problems. Instead, we continue to do things the old way. A region that needs water says: Well, they've got water over there. We are going to get it. We are going to use our politics, our money, and we are going to get that water. Who cares what they think. Who cares what happens to them. By the way, adding flexibility to the operations of the ESA is weakening the ESA. So let's find real solutions for everyone. Please oppose this bill.”