Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2013

Floor Speech

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Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. First, I do want to thank the chairman, the ranking member, and also Representative McCollum.

Mr. Chairman, our amendment is on the Asian carp. It is a very invasive species that really has a devastating effect on the Upper Mississippi River and the Ohio River Basin. This is a fish that can grow to 70 to 100 pounds. It is a voracious fish that is highly invasive. It can potentially destroy a $7 billion commercial fishing business industry in the Great Lakes. It also would have a devastating effect on commercial boaters, recreational boaters, and sportsmen.

Again, I want you to understand that the nature of this fish is incredible. Anytime the surface of the water is disturbed, it leaps out of the water. As I said, it can be 70 to 100 pounds. I know that many of us do boating in the summertime and have little children that boat with us. This is a fish that is so aggressive and so voracious that it can eat sometimes up to four times its own weight.

What does this fish do? It eats everything that other fish eat. If we allow this to come forward, it can be devastating.

This is a great example. I watched the last 3 weeks as both sides tried to get to some type of agreement, and couldn't get there. This is a bipartisan effort, a collective effort, collaborative effort, that allows both the States and the Federal agencies to work together on a solution to a problem that has been in existence and will continue to be in existence until we stop it.

So I want to again thank Chairman Shuster, Ranking Member Rahall, and especially Ms. McCollum as we work together on this piece of legislation. I think it will have a great effect on our ability to keep the Great Lakes, the Upper Mississippi River, and the Ohio River Basin safe.

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