I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2255

To amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to desginate certain segments

of the Lamprey River in New Hampshire as components of the National

Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

AUGUST 4, 1995

Mr. ZELIFF introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee

on Resources

A BILL

To amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to desginate

certain segments of the Lamprey River in New Hampshire as components of the National Wild and Scenic

Rivers System, 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 ‘‘Lamprey Wild and

5 Scenic River Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds that—
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1 (1) Public Law 102–214 authorized the study

2 of a segment of the Lamprey River in New Hamp3 shire for potential inclusion in the National Wild

4 and Scenic Rivers System;

5 (2) the study determined that the segment of

6 river from the Bunker Pond Dam in Epping, New

7 Hampshire, to the confluence with the Piscassic

8 River near the Durham-Newmarket town line is eli9 gible for inclusion in the National Wild and Scenic

10 Rivers System based upon its free-flowing condition

11 and outstanding ecological, anadromous fish, and

12 historical values;

13 (3) during the study, the Lamprey River Advi14 sory Committee, with assistance from the National

15 Park Service and the New Hampshire Department

16 of Environmental Services, prepared a comprehen17 sive management plan for the studied river segment

18 (the ‘‘Lamprey River Management Plan’’, dated

19 January 10, 1995), which establishes objectives,

20 standards, and action programs that will ensure

21 long-term protection of the river’s outstanding val22 ues and compatible management of its land and

23 water resources, without Federal management of af24 fected lands not owned by the United States;
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1 (4) the Lamprey River Advisory Committee has

2 unanimously voted in favor of Wild and Scenic River

3 designation for the river, and has included this rec4 ommendation as an integral part of the Lamprey

5 River Management Plan;

6 (5) the governing bodies of the towns of

7 Newmarket, Durham, and Lee have voted to endorse

8 the Lamprey River Management Plan and to seek

9 designation as a component of the National Wild

10 and Scenic Rivers System; the upstream town of Ep11 ping, which participated in the study on an informal

12 basis, has chosen not to vote on the management

13 plan or designation at this time.

14 SEC. 3. DESIGNATION.

15 Section 3(a) of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (16

16 U.S.C. 1274(a)) is amended by adding the following new

17 paragraph at the end thereof:

18 ‘‘( ) LAMPREY RIVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE.—The

19 11.5-mile segment extending from the southern Lee

20 town line to the confluence with the Piscassic River

21 in the vicinity of the Durham-Newmarket town line

22 (hereinafter in this paragraph referred to as the

23 ‘segment’) as a recreational river. The segment shall

24 be administered by the Secretary of the Interior

25 through cooperative agreements between the Sec-
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1 retary and the State of New Hampshire and its rel2 evant political subdivisions, namely the towns of

3 Durham, Lee, and Newmarket, pursuant to section

4 10(e) of this Act. The segment shall be managed in

5 accordance with the Lamprey River Management

6 Plan dated January 10, 1995, and such amend7 ments thereto as the Secretary of the Interior deter8 mines are consistent with this Act. Such plan shall

9 be deemed to satisfy the requirements for a com10 prehensive management plan pursuant to section

11 3(d) of this Act.’’.

12 SEC. 4. MANAGEMENT.

13 (a) COMMITTEE.—The Secretary of the Interior shall

14 coordinate his management responsibilities under this Act

15 with respect to the segment designated by section 3 with

16 the Lamprey River Advisory Committee established pursu17 ant to New Hampshire RSA 483.

18 (b) LAND MANAGEMENT.—The zoning ordinances

19 duly adopted by the towns of Durham, Lee, and

20 Newmarket, New Hampshire, including provisions for con21 servation of shorelands, floodplains, and wetlands associ22 ated with the segment, shall be deemed to satisfy the

23 standards and requirements of section 6(c) of the Wild

24 and Scenic Rivers Act, and the provisions of that section,

25 which prohibit Federal acquisition of lands by condemna-
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1 tion, shall apply to the segment designated by section 3

2 of this Act. The authority of the Secretary to acquire lands

3 for the purposes of this paragraph shall be limited to ac4 quisition by donation or acquisition with the consent of

5 the owner thereof, and shall be subject to the additional

6 criteria set forth in the Lamprey River Management Plan.

7 SEC. 5. UPSTREAM SEGMENT.

8 Upon request by the town of Epping, which abuts an

9 additional 12 miles of river found eligible for designation

10 as a recreational river, the Secretary of the Interior shall

11 offer assistance regarding continued involvement of the

12 town of Epping in the implementation of the Lamprey

13 River Management Plan and in consideration of potential

14 future addition of that portion of the river within Epping

15 as a component of the Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

16 SEC. 6. FUNDING AUTHORIZATION.

17 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

18 as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.

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