Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, I rise in support of Amendment 9 to H.R. 2018, the Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011 and to oppose the underlying bill, which would overturn almost forty years of Federal legislation by preventing EPA from protecting public health and water quality. H.R. 2018 will turn the Clean Water Act into the Dirty Water Act. Let me paint a picture of what my hometown rivers, the Malden, the Mystic and the Charles, looked like forty years ago. Raw sewage flowed into the river from outmoded wastewater treatment plants. Toxic discharges from industrial facilities colored the river pink and orange. Fish kills, submerged cars and appliances, leaching riverbank landfills, and noxious odors were common occurrences. Because of the Clean Water Act, polluted rivers are being relegated to the history books like the water-powered textile mills on these rivers that started the Industrial Revolution in the United States. Using sound science, cutting-edge technologies and by making polluters pay, EPA and its partners have made remarkable progress in restoring these rivers. The award-winning River's Edge Park on the shores of the Malden River is a testament to the economic development that follows the implementation of environmental laws. My amendment to H.R.…”