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Last modified
8/16/2009 2:43:45 PM
Creation date
2/20/2007 11:04:28 AM
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Board Meetings
Board Meeting Date
11/13/2006
Description
CWCB Director's Report
Board Meetings - Doc Type
Memo
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<br />Interior Secretary Announces Grant Fund Releases: On September 26, Secretary Kempthorne <br />announced the release of more than $67 million in ESA Section 6 grants to 27 states to fund conservation . <br />planning and acquisition of habitat for threatened and endangered fish, wildlife and plants. The grants <br />were awarded through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CESF). For a complete <br />list of the 2006 grant awards, see http://endangered.fws.20v/grants/section6/index.html. <br /> <br />Interior Secretary Looks to Improve ESA: Secretary Kempthorne is expected to push changes to the <br />Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2007. In 1998, then Senator Kempthorne (R-ID) sponsored bipartisan <br />legislation S. 1180 to amend the Act, which made it to the Senate legislative calendar, but no further, and <br />legislative action stalled in the House. At his summer confirmation hearing he said that he looked <br />forward to discussing ways to improve the act and make it more meaningful in helping the very species <br />that we're trying to save." The ESA was last amended and reauthorized in 1988 and for well over a <br />decade continued program spending has been authorized year-to-year under appropriations acts. <br /> <br />Dam Safety Bill Passes: On September 27 the House passed H.R. 4981, to amend the National Dam <br />Safety Program Act by voice vote. A companion bill (S. 2735) awaits action on the Senate Legislative <br />Calendar. Recent dam failures were a catalyst for action, including a failure on the Island of Kauai in <br />Hawaii that took seven lives. According to a 2005 Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) <br />update, there are 75,900 dams in the U.S. and one-third pose a "high" or "significant" risk to life and <br />property . <br /> <br />House Approves National Integrated Drought Information System Act: On September 26, the House <br />approved H.R. 5136, National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) Act of 2006, introduced <br />by Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX) and Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO). A House Science Committee press release <br />stated that "According to the Drought Monitor, in the past year almost 90 percent of the Continental <br />United States experienced some degree of 'abnormal dryness' with over half of the country having <br />experienced severe drought or worse. Forty-five states were impacted by drought; 36 faced severe to <br />extreme drought, resulting in billions of dollars in damage." The legislation would establish a coordinated <br />federal effort to more accurately monitor and predict costly droughts. It is endorsed by the Western <br />Governors' Association, Western States Water Council, and numerous water agencies and farming <br />interests. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />H.R. 5136 would help decisionmakers by: (1) expanding monitoring and data collection systems to <br />include coordinated, comprehensive coverage of key indicators such as soil moisture and ground water; <br />(2) implementing an integrated data collection and dissemination system; and (3) developing effective <br />and useful tools to support analysis and decisionmaking at all levels and geographic scales. The bill <br />would authorize a total of$81 million for 2007-2012. <br /> <br />On September 27, the Senate Commerce Committee unanimously approved S. 2751, without amendment. <br />Introduced by Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE), it is nearly identical companion legislation to H.R. 5136. <br /> <br />Jobanns Announces Grants for Watersbed Studies: Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns announced <br />October 4 that USDA is awarding more than $2.5 million to five land-grant universities to study the <br />effectiveness and practical application of conservation practices at the watershed level. As part of the <br />Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP), researchers and extension specialists will also study <br />the environmental and economic impacts of watershed conservation practices in cooperation with <br />producers in these watersheds. <br /> <br />Additional information on CEAP is available at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/nri/ceap <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />8 <br />
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