Plum Island Preservation Study Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. WELCH. Thank you, Senator, I am fully supportive of the work that you have done. Is there anything that gives more pleasure than being able to do something that is generated by our local citizens, the people we represent, that reflects the dedication, the reverence, the appreciation they have for the natural world in your State of Connecticut or now in my State of Vermont? I mean, what a privilege it is for both of us to be here advocating on behalf of these aspirations of the people we represent.

I know that is true for the Presiding Officer as well, all the work that you have done.

Today, I rise in support of S. 432, the Nulhegan River and Paul Stream Wild and Scenic River Study Act. The bill will initiate the process of designating the Nulhegan River and Paul Stream in Essex County, VT, which is way up in the northeast corner of Vermont that Senator George Aiken named the ``Northeast Kingdom,'' a place that we love and that someday, when you are so lucky that you can come to the Nulhegan River, you will love, too.

I was proud to work with my colleagues Senator Sanders and Representative Balint in introducing this legislation, and it was my first act as a U.S. Senator.

These two rivers run through Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, as I mentioned, home to some of our State's most scenic parts of a scenic State.

It is very close to the annual Moose Festival that I know, Senator, you will enjoy when I finally get you up there to Canaan, VT.

But the Nulhegan, for example, passes through the Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge. It is the only watershed-based refuge in the United States.

And by the way, Silvio Conte, as you know, was a Congressman from Western Massachusetts. That is where I grew up, and he did so much-- Republican--to preserve the watershed of the Connecticut River.

The Nulhegan, the river, winds through the valleys between hills and, in the fall, is framed by really striking foliage, largely undisturbed by outside visitors. They don't know about it, but now they will.

In the spring, the rivers' whitewater provides a unique and challenging place for daring fisherman and paddlers.

Healthy rivers, I know we all agree, are really essential to our State's ecosystems, and they play an important role in Vermont's outdoor recreation economy. It is no surprise that the communities neighboring these two rivers support protecting their free-flowing nature too.

And that is the point I was making at the beginning. When you have the citizens who are living there and seeing how precious this resource is and wanting to do everything they can to protect that resource and we can help them, that is a good day in the U.S. Senate.

S. 432 will preserve these two rivers, enhance Vermont's renowned recreational resources, and conserve these vital habitats.

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