REP. ANDREWS WORKS WITH REP. LOBIONDO TO PROTECT THE DELAWARE RIVER

On June 28, 2005, the House passed the Delaware River Protection Act, which was introduced to Congress by my esteemed colleague, Congressman Frank LoBiondo. I am pleased to have co-sponsored this legislation in a bipartisan effort to protect the ecologically and economically significant Delaware River waterway. In November 2004, the hull of the oil tanker, Athos, was torn open by a submerged object and spilled an estimated 265,000 gallons of oil into our river. The cleanup efforts have cost at least $167 million thus far and the impact to the wetlands will be felt for years to come. We must prevent such tragedies from occurring in the future as it is an economic as well as an environmental imperative; the Delaware River must remain open to commercial traffic. The Delaware River Protection Act is a strong step to secure this precious resource.

This legislation increases the liability limits on single-hull tankers under the Oil Pollution Act, thereby encouraging the adoption of more robust double-hull tankers. In addition, it requires mandatory reporting of objects that are lost overboard to the Coast Guard. The Delaware River Protection Act also prepares for the contingency of another spill by updating the current response plan, establishing a committee to report to Congress on ways to improve oil spill response and prevention, and establishing a pilot project on the Delaware to test techniques to recover submerged oil. I commend Congressman LoBiondo and my fellow members of Congress for adopting the Delaware River Protection Act, HR 1412. To track the progress of this legislation in the Senate, please visit http://thomas.loc.gov.

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