Coastal Habitat Conservation Act of 2023

Floor Speech

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Mrs. GONZALEZ-COLON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2950, the Coastal Habitat Conservation Act. I was proud to join Congressman Huffman as the co-lead on this bipartisan bill, which would congressionally authorize the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program.

This program is one of the Service's most effective and proven initiatives, bringing together public and private partners on a voluntary basis to protect and improve coastal habitats and ecosystems across our Nation. These efforts are carried out throughout 24 priority coastal areas along the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the Gulf of Mexico, the Great Lakes, and of course, the Caribbean.

In 2023, the Coastal Program worked with partners and local communities to implement 153 conservation projects across 19 States and territories, restoring and protecting more than 87,000 acres. This was accomplished by leveraging $3 in partners' contributions for every Federal dollar invested in the program.

In the case of Puerto Rico, we have seen firsthand the success and the impact of this program. Between 2010 and 2021, the Coastal Program supported 218 voluntary-based projects on the island, which contributed to the restoration of almost 2,900 acres of habitat. These include projects to restore coastal dunes, wetlands, and mangrove forests. It also supported partnerships with local farmers to convert sun-grown coffee farms into shade-grown coffee farms which help protect streams and coral reefs by reducing sources of sediment and nutrient pollution.

I trust that formally authorizing the Coastal Program, as H.R. 2950 seeks to do, will ensure it has the necessary tools to continue supporting similar locally driven conservation projects across our Nation, coastal States, and of course territories.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2950.

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