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The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2007 (H.R. 2830) was taken up today in a legislative mark-up held under the jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, of which Alaskan Congressman Don Young is a senior member.  H.R. 2830, as amended by the Subcommittee, authorizes approximately $8.33 billion for the Coast Guard for fiscal year 2008, including $837 million for the service’s Deepwater program. 

Included in this legislation was a provision that would transform the USCG Cutter STORIS, a decommissioned Coast Guard cutter, into a Museum and Maritime Education Center.  Commissioned in 1942, it is the oldest cutter in the Coast Guard fleet and was routinely used to patrol the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea.  

Also included in this bill is language that would require the Coast Guard to carry out comprehensive risk assessments in Cook Inlet and the Aleutian Island chain to more fully analyze the issues and risks associated with oil exploration and transportation as part of the oil spill planning, prevention, and response process in these areas. 

In addition to making sure these two key points were included in the Reauthorization Act, Congressman Don Young was in attendance at this mark-up and read the following statement:

“Mr. Chairman, I had prepared an amendment that I've decided not to offer but would like to ask the Chairman, Ranking Member and other Members of the Committee to work with me to include my language in the Managers' Substitute when the bill comes to the Floor.  As everyone knows there is a tremendous amount of discussion about reducing air pollution from ships as part of the overall discussion about cleaning up the global environment. 

“My language would call upon the Coast Guard to be involved with current and future Demonstration Projects that will test the viability of advancements in technologies to reduce sulfur, nitrogen and particulate matter from emissions from large ships.  As we are testing and learning which of these technologies produces the best results on ships, the Coast Guard should be closely involved as they will ultimately be responsible for how the equipment used in these technologies will be safely deployed on ships---potentially on all types of large cargo and passenger vessels.

“Given the urgency and alarm with which many have called for a cleaner environment, the last thing we should be doing is slowing down, or standing in the way of finding out what works and then getting what works deployed on large vessels.  

“I understand the Coast Guard has made some preliminary comments that raised concerns about the testing of seawater scrubber technology and its possible negative affect on the water that is discharged after being used in the scrubber.  It is my belief that the Coast Guard's comments are about older versions of this technology and that they do not realize that the Demonstration Project currently under way is in fact about testing whether newer technology can not only make vast improvements in the air emissions but at the same time clean the discharge water utilized in the scrubber to environmentally safe and acceptable levels.  We need to find out if this technology works and the Coast Guard needs to be involved in the process.  

“I ask the Chairman and Ranking Member to work with me to include language to this effect as the bill moves to the Floor.  Thank You.”    

This bill will now move to the House floor for full consideration.