Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) made the following statement
about the inclusion, in the National Defense Authorization Act, of three
sections dealing with unexploded ordnance and discarded military
munitions. It will be printed in Volume 2 of the December 13, 2001
Congressional Record.
LS
***
Mr. Chairman, this conference report makes tremendous progress in
strengthening our nation's policies in dealing with unexploded ordnance,
the bombs and shells that did not go off as intended. I very much
appreciate the efforts of Chairman Bob Stump and Ranking Member Ike
Skelton in raising the profile of this important issue, and including
several meaningful reforms to address the problems these discarded
military munitions cause communities throughout our country. Our
colleagues in the Senate also made valuable contributions and I
appreciate their wisdom and hard work. The sections addressing
unexploded ordnance are 311, 312, and 313 in the conference report. I
hope that the activity on this issue during consideration of this year's
defense authorization signals potential for additional steps forward in
the future.
Two of the four major provisions of the bill I have introduced, the
Ordnance and Explosives Risk Management Act (H.R. 2605) have been
legislated in this report. Congress has finally stepped up to the plate
in the campaign to make former military sites safe. In fact, by
requiring the inventory and prioritization scheme and establishing a
separate account, we've rounded first, and we're on our way to second
base. In the near future, I hope Congress will reinforce efforts within
the Pentagon to put someone in charge of munitions response and to fund
that response at a level that will address the problem over the next two
decades, rather than the next two centuries. We also need to ensure
that the Department of Defense, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, and the states are following the same regulatory framework.
--
Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 222B View St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
lsiegel@cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org
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