Wayne Gilchrest: “I rise to engage the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Taylor), the chairman of the subcommittee, in a colloquy…”

“I rise to engage the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Taylor), the chairman of the subcommittee, in a colloquy regarding the eradication and control of exotic, invasive nutria through a partnership of Federal and State agencies and private organizations in Maryland. I would like to thank the chairman for including funding for the Maryland Nutria Eradication and Control Act within the national wildlife refuge operations and maintenance budget. In the Chesapeake Bay, both the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and the Chesapeake Bay field office are partners in the Nutria Eradication and Control Project management team with other Federal agencies, the State of Maryland, and private landowners around the refuge. It covers over 60,000 acres of marsh, and it has been a 5-year program. Funds made available for this project have been authorized by Public Laws 105-322 and 108-16, which specify that, 'In the State of Maryland, the Secretary shall require that the program consist of management, research, and public education activities carried out in accordance with the document published by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service entitled 'Eradication Strategies for Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay Watersheds,'' dated March 2002. This strategy describes a comprehensive approach to nutria eradication on the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and the surrounding areas.”