99–006

107TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 107–442

CONTROL OR ERADICATION OF NUTRIA IN MARYLAND AND

LOUISIANA

MAY 7, 2002.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the

Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. HANSEN, from the Committee on Resources,

submitted the following

R E P O R T

[To accompany H.R. 4044]

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill

(H.R. 4044) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to the State of Maryland for implementation of a program

to eradicate nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.

The amendments are as follows:

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following:

SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

(1) Wetlands and tidal marshes of the Chesapeake Bay and in Louisiana provide significant cultural, economic, and ecological benefits to the Nation.

(2) The South American nutria (Myocastor coypus) is directly contributing to

substantial marsh loss in Maryland and Louisiana on Federal, State, and private land.

(3) Traditional harvest methods to control or eradicate nutria have failed.

Consequently, marsh loss is accelerating.

(4) The nutria eradication and control pilot program authorized by Public Law

105–322 is to develop new and effective methods for eradication of nutria.

(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior

to provide financial assistance to the State of Maryland and the State of Louisiana

for a program to implement measures to eradicate or control nutria and restore

marshland damaged by nutria.

SEC. 2. NUTRIA ERADICATION PROGRAM.

(a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of the Interior (in this section referred to

as the ‘‘Secretary’’), subject to the availability of appropriations, may provide financial assistance to the State of Maryland and the State of Louisiana for a program

to implement measures to eradicate or control nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria.

(b) GOALS.—The goals of the program shall be to—

2

(1) eradicate nutria in Maryland;

(2) eradicate or control nutria in Louisiana and other States; and

(3) restore marshland damaged by nutria.

(c) ACTIVITIES.—In the State of Maryland, the Secretary shall require that the

program consist of management, research, and public education activities carried

out in accordance with the document published by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service entitled ‘‘Eradication Strategies for Nutria in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay Watersheds’’, dated March 2002.

(d) COST SHARING.—

(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the costs of the program may not

exceed 75 percent of the total costs of the program.

(2) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The non-Federal share of the costs of the program may be provided in the form of in-kind contributions of materials or services.

(e) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more than 5 percent of financial assistance provided by the Secretary under this section may be used for administrative expenses.

(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For financial assistance under this section, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $4,000,000 for the State

of Maryland program and $2,000,000 for the State of Louisiana program for each

of fiscal years 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007.

SEC. 3. REPORT.

No later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary

and the National Invasive Species Council shall give consideration to the 2002 report for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries titled ‘‘Nutria in Louisiana’’, and shall develop, in cooperation with the State of Louisiana Department

of Wildlife and Fisheries, a long-term nutria control program with the objective to

significantly reduce and restore the damage nutria cause to coastal wetlands in the

State of Louisiana.

Amend the title so as to read:

A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to the

State of Maryland and the State of Louisiana for implementation of a program to

eradicate or control nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria.

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 4044 as ordered reported is to authorize the

Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to the State of Maryland and the State of Louisiana for implementation of a program

to eradicate or control nutria and restore marshland damaged by

nutria.

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Nutria are large semi-aquatic, surface feeding herbivores that

are extremely destructive to marsh vegetation. Nutria are extremely prolific, producing two to three litters annually. On average, nutria have five young, but a female may have as many as 13

offspring per litter. Nutria weigh on average up to 18 pounds which

is 5 to10 times the size of native muskrats.

This species was introduced in Maryland in the 1940s to assist

the fur industry. There are currently between 50,000 to 75,000 nutria living at the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge in Cambridge, Maryland. The Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge was established under the authority of the Migratory Bird Conservation

Commission on January 23, 1933, for the purpose of providing

habitat for migrating and wintering birds. Since that time, the size

of the Refuge has been expanded to over 23,700 acres from funding

obtained from the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the North

American Wetlands Conservation Act of 1989 and the Refuge

Recreation Act of 1962.

3

Nutria forage directly on the vegetative root mat, leaving the

marsh pitted with digging sites and fragmented with deep swim canals. In the face of rising sea levels, nutria damage is particularly

problematic because it accelerates the erosional processes associated with tidal currents and wave action. The cumulative result of

an overabundance of nutria and rising sea level has been a rapid

conversion of emergent marsh to open water. To compound this

problem, there are no natural predators to control nutria and populations have exploded, causing significant impacts to native wildlife, fish, shellfish, plants and marsh ecosystems.

According to the Blackwater Refuge Manager, at least 7,000 out

of the 17,000 total acres of refuge marsh have already been lost to

nutria and the remaining acreage is at serious risk in the future.

Trapping is conducted on the Refuge in an effort to control nutria

populations. Trapping income from the refuge has been estimated

to contribute approximately $30,000 to the local economy but overall the limited trapping program has not made a real impact on the

population of nutria.

Blackwater is one of nine national wildlife refuges on the lowlying Delmarva Peninsula, which is so named to represent the

three states of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, which share its

200-mile length. This finger of land lies on the track of the Eastern

Flyway and its extensive marshes make it prime habitat for nesting and migrating birds. This Refuge is home to over 250 bird species including bald and golden eagles, Great blue herons, Northern

loons, ospreys and thousands of geese and ducks. In fact, there are

more than 20 different varieties of ducks including mallards, black

ducks, blue-winged teals, green-winged teals, wood ducks, wigeons

and pintails that spend the winter months at Blackwater.

The Refuge also supports a number of mammal species including

bats, sika and white-tailed deer, muskrats, otters, red foxes and

the endangered Delmarva fox squirrel. This steel-gray squirrel was

listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1967.

The fundamental reason for this designation was the loss of habitat. While the Delmarva fox squirrel once ranged from southeastern Pennsylvania throughout the Delmarva Peninsula, today

there are only four counties along the Maryland’s Eastern Shore

that support wild populations.

Due to its abundant wildlife, the Refuge hosts over 500,000 visitors annually. It is the largest tourist attraction in Dorchester

County. The County’s Department of Tourism estimates that

Blackwater Refuge visitors annually spend $15 million in the county. This expenditure has a tremendous impact on local restaurants,

hotels, retail merchants, and other businesses. An irreplaceable

component of the Refuge are the thousands of acres of wetlands

which are the essential habitat for migrating birds. These wetlands

are in serious jeopardy because of the increasing population of nutria.

During the 105th Congress, legislation sponsored by Congressman Wayne T. Gilchrest was enacted to establish the Maryland

Nutria Control Pilot Project to address the serious problems of an

exploding population of nutria. Under Public Law 105–322, $2.9

million was authorized over three years to help alleviate this

invasive problem. To date, Congress has appropriated about $1.5

million to study the impact of nutria on wetland habitats, the reVerDate 11-MAY-2000 05:07 May 09, 2002 Jkt 099006 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\HR442.XXX pfrm04 PsN: HR442
4

productive capacity of this species, methods to restore wetlands and

methods to eradicate nutria populations along Maryland’s Eastern

Shore.

While the long-term goal of the project is to eradicate nutria in

Maryland, the authorization of appropriations for Public Law 105–

322 expires on September 30, 2002. In addition, the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers has calculated that it will costs about $30,000

per acre to restore wetlands at the Blackwater National Wildlife

Refuge. There is an immediate need to eradicate nutria and to restore wetlands that have been destroyed by this invasive species.

This legislation would extend this act for five years with an annual authorization of $6 million per year, with $4 million for the

State of Maryland and $2 million for Louisiana. The State of Louisiana has done an effective job for a number of years in stopping

the expansion of wetland destruction by nutria and this new authorization will allow the State to conduct aerial vegetation surveys, to provide additional incentive payments for a more aggressive nutria control program and to continue efforts to develop effective means to restore wetlands subject to nutria damage. The Committee expects the Secretary of the Interior and the National

Invasive Species Council to support efforts of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to control and restore nutria damage.

After three years of study and analysis, it is time to begin the

difficult job of eradicating and restoring marshland destroyed by

nutria. Specifically, the goals of this measure are to remove nutria

from the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, the Fishing Bay

Wildlife Management Area and Tudor Farms in Maryland, eradicate or control nutria in Louisiana and other states and restore

marshland damaged by these animals. The federal share of this

program will remain at not more than 75 percent and administrative expenses are capped at five percent.

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 4044 was introduced by Congressman Wayne T. Gilchrest

(R–MD) on March 20, 2002. The bill was referred to the Committee

on Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee on

Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife and Oceans. On April 11, 2002,

the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On April 17, 2002, the

Subcommittee met to mark up the bill. Congressman Gilchrest offered an amendment that changed the limitation on administrative

expenses from ten to five percent. It was adopted by voice vote. The

bill, as amended, was then ordered favorably reported to the Full

Committee by voice vote. On April 24, 2002, the Full Resources

Committee met to consider the bill. Congressman W.J. ‘‘Billy’’ Tauzin (R–LA) offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute that

authorized up to $2 million each year until September 30, 2007, to

control the ever-increasing population of nutria and to restore the

damaged caused to coastal wetlands in the State of Louisiana. The

amendment was adopted by unanimous consent. The bill as amended was then ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous consent.

5

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in

the body of this report.

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United States

grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) of that rule provides

that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) of rule

XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section

308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this bill does not

contain any new budget authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures.

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective

of this bill as ordered reported is to authorize the Secretary of the

Interior to provide assistance to the State of Maryland and the

State of Louisiana for implementation of a program to eradicate or

control nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria.

4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the

Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

U.S. CONGRESS,

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE,

Washington, DC, May 3, 2002.

Hon. JAMES V. HANSEN,

Chairman, Committee on Resources,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4044, a bill to authorize

the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to the state of

Maryland and the state of Louisiana for implementation of a program to eradicate or control nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria.

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Deborah Reis.

Sincerely,

BARRY B. ANDERSON

(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).

Enclosure.

6

H.R. 4044—A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to the state of Maryland and the state of Louisiana for implementation of a program to eradicate or control

nutria and restore marshland damaged by nutria

Summary: H.R. 4044 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial assistance to Maryland and Louisiana for

the control or eradication of South American nutria (a foreign

invasive species) and for the restoration of marshlands damaged by

the mammal. For this purpose, the bill would authorize the appropriate of $6 million for each of fiscal years 2003 through 2007. The

bill also would require the Secretary (acting through the U.S. Fish

and Wildlife Service (USFWS), to develop a long-term nutria control program for Louisiana.

Assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4044 would cost $30 million over the

2003–2007 period. The legislation would not affect direct spending

or receipts; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply.

H.R. 4044 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)

and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.

The grant funds authorized by this bill would benefit the states of

Maryland and Louisiana, and any costs incurred by those states to

comply with the conditions of that assistance would be voluntary.

Estimated cost of the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of H.R. 4044 is shown in the following table. The costs

of this legislation fall within budget function 300 (natural resources

and environment).

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars—

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Authorization level ............................................................................... 6 6 6 6 6

Estimated outlays ............................................................................... 6 6 6 6 6

Basis of estimate: For the estimate, CBO assumes that the

amounts authorized by H.R. 4044 will be appropriated for each fiscal year and will be paid to the two states in annual lump sums.

The annual authorization level consists of $4 million for Maryland

and $2 million for Louisiana. CBO estimates that developing the

long-term nutria program for Louisiana required by section 3 of the

bill would have no significant effect on USFWS spending.

Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 4044 contains

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in

UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. The grants funds authorized by this bill would benefit the

states of Maryland and Louisiana, and any costs incurred by those

states to comply with the conditions of that assistance would be

voluntary.

Estimate prepared by: Federal costs: Deborah Reis; impact on

state, local, and tribal governments: Marjorie Miller; impact on the

private sector: Cecil McPherson.

Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

7

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any state, local or tribal law.

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing law.

Æ