{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2002-11-22-pt1-PgE2126-3", "2002-11-22", 107, 2, null, null, "PASSAGE OF H.R. 4750", "HOUSE", "EXTENSIONS", "ALLOTHER", "E2126", "E2127", "[{\"name\": \"Sam Farr\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", "[{\"congress\": \"107\", \"type\": \"HR\", \"number\": \"4750\"}, {\"congress\": \"107\", \"type\": \"HR\", \"number\": \"4750\"}]", "148 Cong. Rec. E2126", "Congressional Record, Volume 148 Issue 152 (Friday, November 22, 2002)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 152 (Friday, November 22, 2002)]\n[Extensions of Remarks]\n[Pages E2126-E2127]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n                          PASSAGE OF H.R. 4750\n\n                                 ______\n\n                             HON. SAM FARR\n\n                             of california\n\n                    in the house of representatives\n\n                       Friday, November 22, 2002\n\n  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to give sincere\nthanks to Chairman Hansen, Ranking Member Rahall and the staff of the\nResources Committee for their efforts to move H.R. 4750 through this\nchamber in the final hours of the 107th Congress. I am pleased to\ninform you Mr. Speaker, that the other body has passed this legislation\nas well and it is on its way to the President. This legislation\ndesignates as wilderness more than 50,000 acres of land in the Central\nCoast of California, adding another jewel in the crown of Big Sur.\n  Mr. Speaker, since this legislation passed without committee action,\nit was not possible to get a Committee Report so I want to inform you\nof my intentions in regard to H.R. 4750. The Big Sur region is a rough,\nwild, sparsely populated area full of scenic vistas and should be\nmanaged as such. In regard to wilderness fire management, it would be\nbeneficial to have a management plan for the Ventana and Silver Peak\nareas prepared, following their designation as wilderness, that would\nauthorize the Forest Supervisor of the Los Padres National Forest to\ntake whatever appropriate actions are necessary for fire prevention and\nwatershed protection. This would include, but not be limited to,\nacceptable fire presuppression and fire suppression measures and\ntechniques. Any special provisions contained in the management plan for\nthe Ventana and Silver Peak Wilderness areas should be incorporated in\nthe planning for the Los Padres National Forest.\n  This language is a slight modification of language enacted in 1977 as\npart of the legislation initially designating the Ventana wilderness\narea. The thought is that current language be as close to original\nlanguage as possible. Local USFS staff have indicated that under normal\nagency procedures, the decision to utilize this existing authority\nwould have to be made at the regional forester level or higher. The\npractical impact is that the existing authority has never been used.\nThis language seeks to make the existing authority more useful by\nauthorizing the decision at the forest supervisor level.\n  Mr. Speaker, in regard to military training at Fort Hunter-Liggett, I\nsuggest that we do nothing to preclude existing low level overflights\nof military aircraft, the designation of new units of special airspace,\nor the use or establishment of military flight training routes over\nwilderness areas. In regard to military access all non-motorized access\nto and use of the wilderness areas designated by this Act for military\ntraining should be permitted to continue in the same manner and degree\nas permitted prior to enactment, subject to reasonable regulation by\nthe land manager. This language will apply to the proposed wilderness\nareas adjacent to Fort Hunter-Liggett. The non-motorized use language\ncovers a variety of training activities that the military has\nundertaken in the National Forest. Currently, the two agencies have an\nMOU that governs such activities. I would encourage a new MOU be\ndeveloped to account for the change to wilderness.\n  Mr. Speaker, the Central Coast is a unique ecosystem in itself. For\nexample, only in this area will you find giant redwoods growing in the\nsame drainage as a yucca plant. Because of this great diversity our\narea faces constant assaults by invasive species. The spread of\ninvasive species continues to inflict great damage to the Big Sur\nregion's environment. Such plant species as South American pampas\ngrass, genesta (French broom) from southern Europe, and cape ivy from\nSouth Africa have taken over large areas of the Big Sur region. In\naddition, a cross breed of ferral and wild pig has become very prolific\nin many areas of Big\n\n[[Page E2127]]\n\nSur. These pigs plough up native plants which destroys habitat for\nnative animals and opens the way for many non native plants to colonize\nthe disturbed ground. On their own, each of these species has inflicted\nmajor adverse changes to the Big Sur landscape. Their combined assault\nhas resulted in the displacement of entire native communities.\n  Mr. Speaker, the federal government has invested millions of dollars\nin acquiring land for conservation in the Big Sur region. A program of\nthis type would help prevent the ecological value of that investment\nfrom being destroyed. This region needs a program to target the\neradication of invasive plant and animal species in the Monterey\nDistrict of the Los Padres National Forest. In addition nearly private\nor other non USFS property where the property owner seeks the\nassistance and where the invasive species are present on that property\npose a threat to national forest lands and should be included as well.\n  Mr. Speaker, I want to see the transfer USFS land currently occupied\nby Pacific Valley School under special use permit to the Pacific Valley\nSchool District. The amount of land to be transferred should not exceed\nthe school's existing footprint (approximately 5 acres). Also, the\ntransfer should include reversionary language that would require\ntransfer back to the Forest Service if the School District ever gave up\nuse of the land. The Pacific Valley School serves the residents of the\nrural southern Big Sur Coast. It has approximately 40 students in\ngrades K-8. The school has occupied a site on USFS property under a\nspecial use permit for approximately 35 years. The school itself\nconsists of 6 portable buildings arranged on a series of concrete and\nasphalt pads. Over the years the school has had a good relationship\nwith the Forest Service. The major problem is the inflexibility that\nthe special use permit arrangement imposes on the school's site\nmanagement. Generally, any changes the school wants to make to the site\nhave to be cleared by the Forest Service. Even if a change, for example\nthe addition of a student garden or replacing a set of building steps,\nmay not need Forest Service approval, the uncertainty of whether it\ndoes have a chilling effect on any activity. This transfer is intended\nto resolve the potential conflict and release the USFS from acting as a\nschool site manager.\n  Finally, Mr. Speaker, I feel we should authorize the construction and\nmaintenance of a new water line and corresponding spring box\nimprovements adjacent to an existing domestic water service in the\nSilver Peak Wilderness Area in the Los Padres National Forest. The\nwater system in question serves two adjacent properties located just\noutside the existing Silver Peak Wilderness Area boundary established\nin 1992. Both parcels are 10 acres and are located in the west \\1/4\\ of\nthe south \\1/4\\ of the southwest \\1/4\\ of the southeast \\1/4\\ of\nsection 14 in township 24 south, range 5 east, MDB&M. Both parcels have\ndrawn water from the same spring for over 40 years. A single pipeline\nruns from the spring box located in the wilderness and delivers water\nto the two parcels in succession. The 1992 act creating the Silver Peak\nWilderness Area grand-fathered this system into the wilderness.\nHowever, Monterey County ordinances now implementing state and federal\nlaw treat the system as a water distribution system which requires it\nto comply with the treatment and storage needs of a larger system\nserving multi-households. The owners of the two parcels want to lay a\nnew separate pipeline alongside the existing line so that they become\ntwo separate individual systems and thus free of the cost of complying\nwith the multiple hook-up requirements.\n  Mr. Speaker, I once again want to thank all those that made passage\nof this legislation possible. Protection of these resources is of great\nbenefit to all.\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2002-11-22-pt1-PgE2126-3"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 6.866127019748092, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}