Jim Saxton: “on April 23rd, the House of Representatives unanimously approved House Concurrent Resolution 8, a resolution that I…”

“on April 23rd, the House of Representatives unanimously approved House Concurrent Resolution 8, a resolution that I introduced along with my colleague, the gentleman from Hawaii. This measure expresses strong support for research, monitoring, and education related to the coral reef ecosystems. Healthy coral reefs help provide numerous benefits to the United States and other nations. For example, coral reefs support important commercial and recreational fisheries, as well as a large tourism and vacation industry, provide natural storm protection in coastal communities, and have recently become an important frontier for biomedical research. The other body has now approved an amended version of House Concurrent Resolution 8. The amendment takes note of the alarming damage to coral reefs caused by destructive fishing practices, as unbelievable as the use of cyanide and dynamite in fishing in some areas of the globe. It further expresses the sense of Congress that international action to eliminate these unbelievably harmful practices is much needed. I believe that this amendment is not only acceptable, but strengthens the resolution, and I am sorry that I did not think about it to begin with. I urge my colleagues to vote ``aye''.”