Political Quotes

“My point, Mr. Chairman, was that the Federal Government right now, today, can make a small but significant improvement by reducing millions of gallons of peak summer demand. Teddy Roosevelt helped designate one of these wildlife refuges as the first waterfowl refuge in 1908. We continue to lease water within these refuges for intensive agricultural uses. The amendment today would be an important step to stop making the problem worse. If the amendment were approved, we would be limiting the leases that expired this year, which are approximately 2,000 out of 20,000 acres. Number one, the basin limitation is what we do virtually everywhere else on wildlife refuges where there are few refuges where farming is allowed but there are controls. If there is truly an agricultural or economic imperative for some of the water-intensive crops, there is private land that is available in the region where people can pay market rate leases rather than having the ground cut out from underneath these private property owners by the Federal Government. It will be market rate, profits go to the local economy, and the Federal Government will not be wasting water on its land. Mr. Chairman, it is important that we send a signal today to lead by example.”