Group Says River Legislation to Wait
20 Nov
A bill in congress that would protect more than 850 miles of U.S. rivers under the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act must wait until 2009 before it receives a final vote, the advocacy group American Rivers announceed recently.
The group said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid confirmed that a lack of time and pressure to complete an economic stimulus package during the current lame duck session will prevent Congress from introducing a bill that includes protections for rivers, including new Wild and Scenic River and Wilderness designations.
American Rivers was confident the bill would be passed by the next Congress.
“While the clock ran out on Congress this year, we will have a whole new ball game in just a couple of months,” Rebecca Wodder, president of American Rivers said in THIS media release.. “The strong bi-partisan support for these watershed protections will spill over into next session and we are confident we will see swift Congressional action on this bill.”
This fall marked the 40th anniversary of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, which President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law on October 2, 1968. The law sought to preserve designated rivers in their free-flowing condition and protect water quality.
Currently the Act protects more than 11,000 miles of 166 rivers in 38
U.S. states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
