Volume 165, No. 44 covering the 1st Session of the 116th Congress (2019 - 2020) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“EPA'S DECISION ON REDWOOD CITY SALT PONDS” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H2650-H2651 on March 12, 2019.
More than half of the Agency's employees are engineers, scientists and protection specialists. The Climate Reality Project, a global climate activist organization, accused Agency leadership in the last five years of undermining its main mission.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
EPA'S DECISION ON REDWOOD CITY SALT PONDS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Speier) for 5 minutes.
Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, I am outraged, but not surprised, that the political appointees in the EPA's Washington, D.C., office have decided that the Redwood City salt ponds in my district do not include waters of the United States under the Clean Water Act.
This administration has completely hijacked the jurisdictional process away from the experts on the ground, putting politics ahead of science. No surprise.
Stunningly, after experts at the EPA's Region 9 had drafted a determination in 2016 that came to a completely opposite conclusion, the EPA trampled on that evidence-based determination.
The administration was, no doubt, counting on the fact that the draft would not be released to the public. Well, I am not willing to allow that to happen.
Let the Record reflect that, after being designated an EPA special case, Region 9 experts conducted an extensive review of the property and finally concluded that 1,270 acres within the Redwood City salt ponds property are, in fact, waters of the United States for the following reasons.
First, the tidal channels within the property were part of the traditionally navigable waters of the San Francisco Bay and were not converted to ``fast land'' or ``dry solid upland'' prior to the enactment of the Clean Water Act. This is because waters that have been severed from tidal influence but are regularly inundated are not fast lands.
Secondly, the salt ponds in their current condition have been shown to be navigable in the past and could be used in interstate or foreign commerce with reasonable improvements, such as removing levees. In fact, large portions of former salt ponds in proximity to the site have been restored to tidal marshes.
Third, the salt ponds are impoundments of water otherwise defined as waters of the United States.
Finally, the salt ponds have significant nexus to the traditionally navigable waters of the adjacent San Francisco Bay, providing food and habitat to certain species of microorganisms, invertebrates, and birds.
The most recent EPA determination directly contradicts the findings of Region 9 experts, but it is completely in line with this administration's record of gutting environmental protections in the name of corporate interests.
I realize that this administration struggles to recognize any body of water that is not a murky, scum-filled swamp, but I refuse to let this 180-degree political flip-flop occur without public disclosure. Believe me, the decision by Administrator Wheeler is a flop. That is why I am submitting this draft determination in its entirety for the public record.
Draft Redwood City Salt Ponds JD
Executive Summary
This document constitutes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) determination of the federal jurisdictional status of the Redwood City Salt Ponds for purposes of the Clean Water Act (CWA). This CWA jurisdictional determination applies to the Redwood City Salt Ponds property (``Redwood City Salt Ponds'' or ``the Property'') depicted in Figure 1. The Property is approximately 1,365 contiguous acres adjacent to Westpoint Slough, a part of San Francisco Bay, located near Seaport Boulevard, Redwood City, San Mateo County, California. Within the boundaries of the subject area, approximately 95 acres of the Property are not ``waters of the United States'' where they are above the High Tide Line on the outer side of the perimeter levees bounding the Property, and above the Ordinary High Water Mark on the levee interiors. These non-jurisdictional areas consist of levees, building pads and other features converted to fast land before passage of the CWA.
The remaining estimated 1,270 acres within the subject area are ``waters of the United States'' as defined by the CWA, because: (1) the tidal channels within the Redwood City Salt Ponds were part of the traditionally navigable waters of San Francisco Bay, and were not converted to fast land prior to enactment of the CWA; (2) the salt ponds in their current condition have been shown to be navigable in fact, and are susceptible to use in interstate or foreign commerce with reasonable improvements; (3) the salt ponds are impoundments of waters otherwise defined as waters of the United States; and (4) the salt ponds have a significant nexus to the traditionally navigable waters of the adjacent San Francisco Bay.
Complete text can be found on https://speier.house.gov/
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