Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, And Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2007
AGRICULTURE, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2007 -- (Senate - December 05, 2006)
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Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise in support of an amendment offered by the senior Senator from North Dakota, KENT CONRAD, to H.R. 5384, the Fiscal Year 2007 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act. I am proud to have joined Senator Conrad, as well as the senior Senator from Hawaii, DAN INOUYE, to provide much needed relief to agricultural communities across our nation in need of assistance.
This legislation is important to the agricultural industry in the State of Hawaii, in particular the County of Hawaii which was significantly impacted by the October 15, 2006, earthquake. I was in my home State during this earthquake measuring 6.7 in magnitude and present during aftershocks that were felt days after the initial tremor. A few hours after the earthquake occurred, I spoke with Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, Director David Paulison to ensure that FEMA was ready to support State and local response and recovery efforts in Hawaii. In addition, the day after the earthquake I toured the Big Island with Senator Inouye, the National Guard, and State Civil Defense to assess the resulting damage.
While I am pleased that Federal, State, and local agencies have been able to work cooperatively to provide public and individual assistance, the needs of our agricultural community must not be ignored. Irrigation systems damaged by the earthquake are the sole source of water for a majority of farmers and members of rural communities in this region. In addition to the economic impact, it is imperative that we recognize that the livelihoods of these hard working individuals have drastically been impacted by the earthquake. It is for this reason I join my colleagues in supporting this amendment which would provide $3 million to the Farm Service Agency, FSA, for its Emergency Conservation Program to repair broken irrigation pipelines and damaged and collapsed water tanks. Of this amount, $2 million will go toward repairing the damages to stone fences on cattle ranches in the Kona and Kohala areas, and another $1 million is needed under the Emergency Loan Program to cover losses of agricultural income. The amendment also provides $2 million to the Big Island Resource Conservation and Development Council to repair of the Kohala Ditch system that was also severely damaged by the earthquake; and $10 million to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, NRCS, Emergency Watershed Protection Program for the repair of the Lower Hamakua Ditch and the Waimea Irrigation System/Upper Hamakua Ditch--which were heavily damaged by the earthquake and are negatively impacting the farming community on the Big Island.
I commend Senator Conrad for his dedication and commitment to our Nation's farmers and ranchers. This amendment is necessary to ensure that they may continue to provide U.S. agricultural products, and I ask my colleagues to support this important amendment.
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