Gulf Restoration: a Progress Report Three Years After the Deepwater Horizon Disaster
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S. HRG. 113–650 GULF RESTORATION: A PROGRESS REPORT THREE YEARS AFTER THE DEEPWATER HORIZON DISASTER HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JUNE 6, 2013 Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 94–681 PDF WASHINGTON : 2015 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate Nov 24 2008 09:11 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 075679 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 S:\GPO\DOCS\94681.TXT JACKIE SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West Virginia, Chairman BARBARA BOXER, California JOHN THUNE, South Dakota, Ranking BILL NELSON, Florida ROGER F. WICKER, Mississippi MARIA CANTWELL, Washington ROY BLUNT, Missouri MARK PRYOR, Arkansas MARCO RUBIO, Florida CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri KELLY AYOTTE, New Hampshire AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota DEAN HELLER, Nevada MARK WARNER, Virginia DAN COATS, Indiana MARK BEGICH, Alaska TIM SCOTT, South Carolina RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut TED CRUZ, Texas BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii DEB FISCHER, Nebraska WILLIAM COWAN, Massachusetts RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin ELLEN L. DONESKI, Staff Director JAMES REID, Deputy Staff Director JOHN WILLIAMS, General Counsel DAVID SCHWIETERT, Republican Staff Director NICK ROSSI, Republican Deputy Staff Director REBECCA SEIDEL, Republican General Counsel and Chief Investigator (II) VerDate Nov 24 2008 09:11 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 075679 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\DOCS\94681.TXT JACKIE C O N T E N T S Page Hearing held on June 6, 2013 ................................................................................. 1 Statement of Senator Nelson .................................................................................. 1 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 10 Statement of Senator Wicker .................................................................................. 8 Statement of Senator Blumenthal .......................................................................... 32 WITNESSES Hon. Mary Landrieu, U.S. Senator from Louisiana .............................................. 1 Article dated May 31, 2013 from the Washington Post, Opinion entitled, ‘‘Restoration of the Gulf of Mexico can’t wait’’ by Bob Graham and William K. Reilly ........................................................................................... 2 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 6 Lois Schiffer, General Counsel, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Ad- ministration, U.S. Department of Commerce .................................................... 11 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 12 Hon. Rachel Jacobsen, Acting Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, U.S. Department of the Interior ............................................................. 20 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 22 Jeff Trandahl, Executive Director, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation ....... 26 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 27 Trudy D. Fisher, Executive Director, Mississippi Department of Environ- mental Quality ..................................................................................................... 36 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 38 Hon. George Neugent, Mayor, Monroe County, Florida ....................................... 40 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 42 Eric Draper, Executive Director, Audubon Florida ............................................... 47 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 48 Stephen Polasky, Fesler-Lampert Professor of Ecological/Environmental Eco- nomics, University of Minnesota ........................................................................ 55 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 57 APPENDIX Letter dated May 1, 2013 to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council from the National Audubon Society; Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana; Environmental Defense Fund; Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and the National Wildlife Federation ........................................................................ 63 Letter dated July 14, 2013 to the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council from the National Audubon Society; Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana; Environmental Defense Fund; Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and the National Wildlife Federation ........................................................................ 77 Response to written questions submitted to Lois Schiffer by: Hon. Bill Nelson ............................................................................................... 82 Hon. Roger F. Wicker ....................................................................................... 85 Hon. Marco Rubio ............................................................................................. 87 Response to written questions submitted to Hon. Rachel Jacobson by: Hon. Bill Nelson ............................................................................................... 89 Hon. Amy Klobuchar ........................................................................................ 90 Hon. Marco Rubio ............................................................................................. 91 Response to written questions submitted to Jeff Trandahl by: Hon. Bill Nelson ............................................................................................... 92 Hon. Roger F. Wicker ....................................................................................... 93 Hon. Marco Rubio ............................................................................................. 93 (III) VerDate Nov 24 2008 09:11 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 075679 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\DOCS\94681.TXT JACKIE IV Page Response to written question submitted by Hon. Roger F. Wicker to Trudy D. Fisher ............................................................................................................... 94 Response to written questions submitted to Hon. George Neugent by: Hon. Bill Nelson ............................................................................................... 94 Hon. Marco Rubio ............................................................................................. 94 Response to written questions submitted by Hon. Bill Nelson to Eric Draper .. 96 Response to written question submitted to Dr. Stephen Polasky by: Hon. Hon. Bill Nelson ...................................................................................... 96 Hon. Roger F. Wicker ....................................................................................... 97 VerDate Nov 24 2008 09:11 Jun 02, 2015 Jkt 075679 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 S:\GPO\DOCS\94681.TXT JACKIE GULF RESTORATION: A PROGRESS REPORT THREE YEARS AFTER THE DEEPWATER HORIZON DISASTER THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2013 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION, Washington, DC. The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 11:02 a.m., in room SR–253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Bill Nelson, pre- siding. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BILL NELSON, U.S. SENATOR FROM FLORIDA Senator NELSON. The meeting will come to order. And it looks like it is very much in order. [Laughter.] Senator NELSON. We apologize for the late start. We just com- pleted three votes. And to accommodate Senator Landrieu, I want to forgo any opening statements so that we can accommodate her need to get back to the floor. I just want to say that if there is one person that is responsible for the passage of the RESTORE Act, it is the senior Senator from Louisiana. She was relentless. And what you learn around this in- stitution is that you don’t want to cross Mary Landrieu. [Laughter.] Senator NELSON. And, in that relentlessness, she got across to so many others that do not represent states that are on the Gulf the necessity for this money to flow in an orderly fashion by law and the necessity of restoring the environment and our people. And so, Senator Landrieu, we want to give you the opportunity for the first word. STATEMENT OF HON. MARY LANDRIEU, U.S. SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA Senator LANDRIEU. Well, thank you so much, Chairman Nelson and Ranking Member Wicker. It really is a pleasure and truly an honor to be asked to testify before this important subcommittee. I want to thank both of you before I begin my remarks for your extraordinary leadership in the passage of the RESTORE Act. I thank you for your compliments, Mr. Chairman, but you know it would not have happened without strong support from all of the Senators from the Gulf Coast. And you, in particular, were in a very challenging political environment and yet would find the time (1) VerDate Nov 24 2008