The US Senate passed a bill last week that could be a death warrant for Apalachicola Bay and the local seafood industry.
The bill now heads to the House.
The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) has been updated every two years since 1974. WRDA is the main vehicle for authorizing water projects to be studied, planned and developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer (Corps). It is also the legislative vehicle for making policy changes with respect to the Corps’ water resource projects and programs.
Although praised by many industry leaders, the WRDA for 2013 has been criticized for both its failure to address budgetary shortfalls and its lack of environmental consciousness. Part of the act is a provision to “streamline” environmental assessments required before Corps projects can be implemented.
In a press release, Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation said, “Unfortunately, language in this bill undermines the bedrock environmental principle that the federal government should look before it leaps. Time and time again, common-sense environmental reviews have shed light on expensive, damaging proposals that are not in our national interest.”
via Water wars victory for Georgia – Local News – ApalachTimes.com.
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