Earl Blumenauer: “last week we observed the 35th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, and it was an important observation here on the floor…”

“last week we observed the 35th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, and it was an important observation here on the floor as we dealt with the impact that that new law had, the heightened awareness and the progress that resulted. Back in 1972 when the law was enacted, only one-third of our waterways met water quality standards. Two-thirds did not. In the course of that 35 years, we have reversed that: Now there are only one-third that don't meet the goal. But the fact is that there still is one-third that are not in compliance with our basic water quality standards. When we look under the ground, the situation is even worse. There are over 72,000 miles of sewer pipe and water main that are over 80 years old. It is one of the reason large sink holes open up and swallow trucks in American streets, why the American Society of Civil Engineers has given our water infrastructure a D-minus grade. All of this is compounded by the stress from global warming, as we see not just the ice caps shrink but the snow pack being reduced, we watch evaporation being accelerated as a result of the elevated temperatures, and we see that thirsty crops need more water because of the global warming. Agriculture of course is 90 percent of our water commitment. Now, there is going to be more friction, more problems over time with Water and Agriculture. We have some of our programs that have been enacted that are just plain silly.…”