II 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3490 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to initiate and complete an evaluation 

of land and water located in northeastern Pennsylvania for future acquisition and inclusion in a potential Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 12, 2006 

Mr. SANTORUM introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to initiate and complete an evaluation of land and water located in northeastern Pennsylvania for future acquisition and inclusion 

in a potential Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Cherry Valley National 

5 Wildlife Refuge Study Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) the scenic Cherry Valley area of north2 eastern Pennsylvania is blessed with more than 80 

3 special-concern animal and plant species and natural 

4 habitats; 

5 (2) 6 species that are listed as endangered spe6 cies or threatened species under the Endangered 

7 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) have 

8 been documented within or near Cherry Valley, in9 cluding— 

10 (A) the bog turtle (possibly the most sig11 nificant population of the listed subspecies); 

12 (B) the dwarf wedge mussel; 

13 (C) the northeastern bulrush; 

14 (D) the small whorled pogonia; 

15 (E) the bald eagle; and 

16 (F) the Indiana bat (a historic resident, 

17 for which efforts to reestablish favorable condi18 tions are being carried out); 

19 (3) Cherry Valley provides habitat for at least 

20 79 species of national or regional concern, which ei21 ther nest in Cherry Valley or migrate through the 

22 area during critical times in their life cycle, includ23 ing— 

24 (A) neotropical migratory birds, such as 

25 the Cerulean Warbler, the Worm-eating WarVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:46 Jun 13, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3490.IS S3490

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1 bler, and the Wood Thrush, all of which nest in 

2 Cherry Valley; 

3 (B) waterfowl, such as the American Black 

4 Duck; 

5 (C) several globally rare plants, such as 

6 the spreading globeflower; and 

7 (D) anadromous fish species; 

8 (4)(A) the Cherry Valley watershed encom9 passes a large segment of the Kittatinny Ridge, an 

10 important migration route for birds of prey through11 out the northeastern United States; and 

12 (B) every migratory raptor species in the north13 east United States is regularly observed along the 

14 Kittatinny Ridge during the autumnal migration, in15 cluding the bald eagle, the golden eagle, and the 

16 broad-winged hawk; 

17 (5) the Kittatinny Ridge also includes a long 

18 segment of the Appalachian Trail, a nationally sig19 nificant natural, cultural, and recreational feature; 

20 (6) many of the significant wildlife habitats 

21 found in Cherry Valley, especially the rare cal22 careous wetlands, have disappeared from other local23 ities in that range; 

24 (7) ongoing studies have documented the high 

25 water quality of Cherry Creek; 


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1 (8) 2 federally-owned parcels of land are contig2 uous to the area to be studied under this Act for ac3 quisition and inclusion in a potential Cherry Valley 

4 National Wildlife Refuge, including— 

5 (A) the Delaware Water Gap National 

6 Recreation Area; and 

7 (B) a 700-acre segment of the Appalachian 

8 Trail owned by the National Park Service; and 

9 (9) public meetings over several years have 

10 demonstrated strong, deep, and growing local sup11 port for a Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge, 

12 as demonstrated by the following: 

13 (A) Area landowners, business and commu14 nity leaders, media, and elected officials have 

15 consistently voiced their enthusiasm for a Cher16 ry Valley National Wildlife Refuge. 

17 (B)(i) Numerous local communities and 

18 public and private conservation entities share 

19 complementary goals for protecting Cherry Val20 ley and are energetically conserving wildlife 

21 habitat and farmland. 

22 (ii) Along with State land management 

23 agencies and the National Park Service, those 

24 local entities— 


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1 (I) represent potential strong partners 

2 for the United States Fish and Wildlife 

3 Service; and 

4 (II) view a Cherry Valley National 

5 Wildlife Refuge as a complement to exist6 ing private, county, municipal, and State 

7 efforts. 

8 (C) A number of local landowners have al9 ready put their land into conservation ease10 ments or other conservation arrangements. 

11 (D) A voter-approved Monroe County, 

12 Pennsylvania, open space fund and a voter-ap13 proved Stroud Township, Pennsylvania, munic14 ipal land conservation fund have contributed to 

15 many of the projects described in this para16 graph. 

17 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this Act: 

19 (1) MAP.—The term ‘‘map’’ means the map en20 titled ‘‘Proposed Cherry Valley National Wildlife 

21 Refuge–Authorization Boundary’’ and dated Feb22 ruary 24, 2005. 

23 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

24 the Secretary of the Interior. 


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1 (3) STUDY AREA.—The term ‘‘Study Area’’ 

2 means the fish and wildlife habitat and aquatic and 

3 terrestrial communities in Cherry Valley that are— 

4 (A) located in northeastern Pennsylvania; 

5 and 

6 (B) identified on the map. 

7 SEC. 4. STUDY OF REFUGE POTENTIAL AND FUTURE REF8 UGE LAND ACQUISITION. 

9 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 30 days after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall initiate a 

11 study to evaluate the Study Area for— 

12 (1) the potential acquisition of the Study Area 

13 by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service 

14 through donation, exchange, or voluntary sale; and 

15 (2) the subsequent inclusion of the Study Area 

16 in a potential Cherry Valley National Wildlife Ref17 uge. 

18 (b) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study under 

19 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with appro20 priate State and local officials, private conservation orga21 nizations, affected major landowners, and other interested 

22 persons regarding, with respect to the Study Area— 

23 (1) the identification of eligible land, water, and 

24 interests that are appropriate for acquisition for a 

25 national wildlife refuge; and 


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1 (2) the determination of the boundaries within 

2 which such an acquisition should be made. 

3 (c) INCLUSIONS.—In conducting the study under 

4 subsection (a), the Secretary shall— 

5 (1) determine whether the Study Area is suit6 able for— 

7 (A) inclusion in the National Wildlife Ref8 uge System; and 

9 (B) management in accordance with the 

10 policies of the National Wildlife Refuge System 

11 Administration Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd 

12 et seq.); 

13 (2) assess the conservation benefits to be gained 

14 from the establishment of a Cherry Valley National 

15 Wildlife Refuge including— 

16 (A) preservation and maintenance of di17 verse populations of fish, wildlife, and plants, 

18 including species listed as threatened species or 

19 endangered species under the Endangered Spe20 cies Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 

21 (B) protection and enhancement of aquatic 

22 and wetland habitats; 

23 (C) opportunities for compatible wildlife24 dependent recreation, scientific research, and 


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1 environmental education and interpretation; 

2 and 

3 (D) fulfillment of international obligations 

4 of the United States with respect to fish and 

5 wildlife and their habitats; and 

6 (3)(A) provide an opportunity for public partici7 pation; and 

8 (B) give special consideration to views ex9 pressed by local public and private entities regarding 

10 land, water, and interests in the Study Area for fu11 ture acquisition for refuge purposes. 

12 (d) LIMITATION.—The Secretary shall acquire not 

13 more than 30,000 total acres of land, water, and interests 

14 in the Study Area. 

15 (e) REPORT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

18 shall— 

19 (A) complete the study under subsection 

20 (a); and 

21 (B) submit to the Committee on Environ22 ment and Public Works of the Senate and the 

23 Committee on Resources of the House of Rep24 resentatives a report describing the results of 

25 the study. 


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1 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The report under paragraph 

2 (1)(B) shall include— 

3 (A) a map that— 

4 (i) identifies and prioritizes specific 

5 land, water, and interests in the Study 

6 Area for future acquisition by the Sec7 retary; and 

8 (ii) delineates an acquisition boundary 

9 for a potential Cherry Valley National 

10 Wildlife Refuge; 

11 (B) a cost estimate for the acquisition of 

12 such land, water, and interests in the Study 

13 Area as the Secretary determines to be appro14 priate for refuge status; and 

15 (C) an estimate of funds that could be 

16 made available from non-Federal sources for 

17 the acquisition and management of land, water, 

18 and interests in the Study Area. 

19 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

20 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

21 out this section $200,000. 

Æ 


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