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Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions - National Aquatic Invasive Species Act of 2003

Date: March 5, 2003
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Animals and Wildlife

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleagues, Senator LEVIN and Senator SNOWE in introducing the "National Aquatic Invasive Species Act of 2003."

The waters of the United States continue to face threats from aquatic invasive species. Invasive species take both an economic and an environmental toll. The United States and Canada are spending $14 million a year just to try to control sea lamprey, a species that has invaded Lake Champlain and the Great Lakes. The environmental costs are also staggering. Invasive species usually have high reproductive rates, disperse easily, and can tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions, making them very difficult to eradicate. They often lack predators in their new environment and out-compete native species for prey or breeding sites.

The legislation we are introducing today will build on programs established over the last decade and focus much of our attention and resources on preventing invasive species from entering our aquatic ecosystems. This legislation establishes a mandatory ballast water management program for the entire country; makes federal funds and resources available for rapid response to the introduction of invasive species and for prevention, control and research.

Increased funding and resources for dispersal barrier projects and research to prevent the interbasin transfer of organisms is of particular importance in my State of Vermont. We, along with New York, are home to one of this country's most beautiful lakes—Lake Champlain. However, zebra mussels, Eurasian water milfoil, water chestnuts, and sea lamprey have invaded Lake Champlain and are having a devastating impact. Like most who visit Lake Champlain, these species want to call it home, but we cannot compromise the health of the lake. Examining the feasibility and effectiveness of a dispersal barrier in the Lake Champlain Canal to control the dispersal of invasive species in the lake is another avenue toward preventing further destructive dispersal of these species.

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I look forward to working with my colleagues on the Environment and Public Works Committee and in the Senate to move this important legislation forward.

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