Including California in Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003
Floor Speech
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Mr. McCLINTOCK. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
It is easy to joke about the nutria, more commonly called a ``swamp rat,'' but their proliferation in regions like California is a growing threat to water infrastructure throughout the State.
Louisiana has suffered this invasive species since the 1930s; the Chesapeake since the 1940s. They are now proliferating in California, where they destroy irrigation systems, undermine dams and levees, erode riverbanks, displace native wildlife, and lay waste to aquatic vegetation.
This legislation amends the Nutria Eradication and Control Act of 2003 and reauthorizes funding for the program until fiscal year 2025. Currently, Maryland and Louisiana are the only States eligible for funding, yet the problem is national. According to estimates, there could be nearly a quarter million of these destructive creatures in California within 5 years if we don't take action now.
California has enough problems of its own making to deal with. It requires the same assistance as provided to other parts of the country to control this invasive infestation, and this bill broadens the eligibility nationwide to do so.
During committee consideration, this measure was amended to more closely resemble the language included in my legislation, H.R. 5217, the Water Optimization for the West Act, which makes this a national program rather than an earmark.
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Mr. McCLINTOCK. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Graves).
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Mr. McCLINTOCK. Madam Speaker, after the gentleman's description, I am going to resist the temptation to comment on the unique culinary traditions of my friends in Louisiana.
In California, we don't want to eat them. We just want to get rid of them. That is what this bill is all about.
I urge its adoption, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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