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[Senate Report 113-60]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                                       Calendar No. 114
113th Congress                                                   Report
                       }          SENATE        {
 1st Session                                                     113-60
======================================================================

 
                  WOOD-PAWCATUCK WATERSHED PROTECTION

                                _______
                                

                 June 27, 2013.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

    Mr. Wyden, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 349]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 349) to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers 
Act to designate a segment of the Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, 
Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers in the States of Connecticut and 
Rhode Island for study for potential addition to the National 
Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                                Purpose

    The purpose of S. 349 is to designate segments of the 
Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers in the 
States of Connecticut and Rhode Island for study for potential 
addition to the Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

                          Background and Need

    Several segments of the Pawcatuck, Wood, and Chipuxet 
Rivers are listed on the Nationwide Rivers Inventory as 
potential candidates for Wild and Scenic River designation. 
These river segments were the focus of a 1980s planning and 
conservation study undertaken through the National Park 
Service's Rivers and Trails Conservation Assistance program, 
which concluded in part, ``the Wood and Pawcatuck Rivers 
corridor is Rhode Island's least developed and most rural river 
system. Its waters are the cleanest and purest and its 
recreational opportunities are unparalleled by any other river 
system in the state.''
    The river segments also provide opportunities for 
recreation and tourism that contribute to the economy of the 
local communities and offer important experiences, ranging from 
visiting Native American fishing grounds to seeing Colonial and 
early industrial mill ruins. The rivers are also a prime 
location for outdoor activities like trout fishing, canoeing, 
bird watching, and hiking.
    The Queen and Beaver Rivers have been recognized for their 
pristine headwaters and are critical to the high water quality 
and biological diversity of the upper Pawcatuck. In 2004, the 
legislatively established Rhode Island Rivers Council 
classified the Wood-Pawcatuck watershed as ``Rhode Island's 
premier freshwater recreational resource.''
    The study proposed in this legislation is intended to help 
Rhode Island and Connecticut continue their stewardship of 
these rivers and enhance existing state and local efforts to 
preserve and manage this watershed. It is anticipated that this 
study would be conducted in close cooperation with the 
communities, state agencies, local governments, and private 
organizations that are stakeholders in the process.

                          Legislative History

    Senators Reed, Blumenthal, Murphy, and Whitehouse 
introduced S. 349 on February 14, 2013. The Subcommittee on 
National Parks held a hearing on S. 349 on April 23, 2013. At 
its business meeting on May 16, 2013 the Committee ordered S. 
349 favorably reported.
    In the 112th Congress, Senators Reed, Blumenthal, 
Lieberman, and Whitehouse introduced similar legislation, S. 
3423, on July 23, 2012. Also in the 112th Congress, the House 
Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and 
Public Lands held a hearing on similar legislation, H.R. 3388, 
on April 17, 2012. A bill was reported by the House Resources 
Committee on June 7, 2012, (H. Rept. 112-603) and passed the 
House of Representatives on July 23, 2012, by voice vote.

                        Committee Recommendation

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on May 16, 2013, by a voice vote of a 
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 349.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1 contains the short title, the ``Wood-Pawcatuck 
Watershed Protection Act.''
    Section 2(a) amends section 5(a) of the Wild and Scenic 
Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1276(a)) to designate certain sections of 
the Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers for 
study for potential addition to the National Wild and Scenic 
Rivers System.
    Subsection (b) amends section 5(b) of the Wild and Scenic 
Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1276(b)) to direct the Secretary of the 
Interior to complete the study named in the previous section 
within 3 years after the date on which funds are made available 
and submit a report to the appropriate committees of Congress 
describing the results of the study.

                   Cost and Budgetary Considerations

    The following estimate of costs of this measure has been 
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

S. 349--Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act

    S. 349 would require the National Park Service (NPS) to 
study segments of the Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, Wood, and 
Pawcatuck Rivers in Rhode Island and Connecticut for potential 
additions to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Based 
on information provided by the NPS, CBO estimates that 
implementing the legislation would cost about $400,000 over the 
next three years, assuming the availability of appropriated 
funds. Enacting S. 349 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    S. 349 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    On May 13, 2013, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 
723, the Wood-Pawcatuck Watershed Protection Act, as ordered to 
be reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on 
April 24, 2013. The two bills are similar, and the CBO cost 
estimates are the same.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Martin von 
Gnechten. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                      Regulatory Impact Evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 349.
    The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of 
imposing Government-established standards or significant 
economic responsibilities on private individuals and 
businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 349, as ordered reported.

                   Congressionally Directed Spending

    S. 349, as reported, does not contain any congressionally 
directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited 
tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules 
of the Senate.

                        Executive Communications

    The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the 
April 23, 2013, Subcommittee on National Parks hearing on S. 
349 follows:

  Statement of Peggy O'Dell, Deputy Director for Operations, National 
                Park Service, Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to appear 
before you today to present the views of the Department of the 
Interior on S. 349, a bill to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers 
Act to designate a segment of the Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, 
Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers in the States of Connecticut and 
Rhode Island for study for potential addition to the National 
Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
    The Department supports enactment of S. 349. The river 
segments and tributary areas proposed for study, which comprise 
the Wood-Pawtucket Watershed, exhibit the types of qualities 
and resource values that would make it a worthy and important 
candidate for potential addition to the National Wild and 
Scenic Rivers System. However, we feel that priority should be 
given to the 31 previously authorized studies for potential 
units of the National Park System, potential new National 
Heritage Areas, and potential additions to the National Trails 
System and National Wild and Scenic Rivers System that have not 
yet been transmitted to Congress.
    S. 349 directs the Secretary of the Interior to study named 
segments of the Pawcatuck, Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen and Wood 
Rivers. The bill also specifies that the headwaters segments of 
the Wood and Queen Rivers include all tributaries, ensuring 
that virtually the entire Wood-Pawtucket Watershed is assessed. 
The bill requires the study to be completed and transmitted to 
Congress within three years after funding is made available for 
it.
    Several segments of the Pawcatuck, Wood and Chipuxet Rivers 
are listed on the Nationwide Rivers Inventory (NRI) as 
potential candidates for Wild and Scenic River designation. 
These NRI-listed segments were the focus of a 1980s planning 
and conservation study undertaken through the National Park 
Service's Rivers and Trails Conservation Assistance program, 
which concluded in part, ``The Wood and Pawcatuck Rivers 
corridor is Rhode Island's least developed and most rural river 
system. Its waters are the cleanest and purest and its 
recreational opportunities are unparalleled by any other river 
system in the state.'' The Queen and Beaver Rivers have been 
recognized for their pristine headwaters nature, critical to 
the high water quality and biological diversity of the upper 
Pawcatuck, and have been the focus of significant conservation 
efforts by the Nature Conservancy and Rhode Island Audubon 
Society, among others. In 2004, the legislatively-established 
Rhode Island Rivers Council classified the Wood-Pawcatuck 
watershed as ``Rhode Island's premier freshwater recreational 
resource.''
    If enacted, the National Park Service intends to undertake 
the study in close cooperation with the affected communities, 
the relevant agencies of the states of Rhode Island and 
Connecticut, and interest groups such the Wood-Pawcatuck 
Watershed Association through a partnership-based study 
approach. This is the approach that has been used since the 
1980s for studies of rivers located in New England and other 
parts of the Northeast Region. The partnership-based approach 
is recognized in Section 10(e) of the Wild and Scenic Rivers 
Act as a means of encouraging state and local governmental 
participation in the administration of a component of the 
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The partnership-based 
approach also allows for development of a proposed river 
management plan as part of the study, which helps landowners 
and local jurisdictions understand their potential future roles 
in river management should Congress decide to designate part or 
all of the rivers being studied.
    This concludes my prepared remarks, Mr. Chairman. I will be 
happy to answer any questions you or other committee members 
may have regarding this bill.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill S. 349, as ordered reported, are shown as follows 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

                       WILD AND SCENIC RIVERS ACT

                           Public Law 90-542

  AN ACT To provide a National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and for 
                             other purposes

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, That
    (a) this Act may be cited as the ``Wild and Scenic Rivers 
Act.''

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    Sec. 5. (a) The following rivers are hereby designated for 
potential addition to the national wild and scenic rivers 
system:

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (141) Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, Wood, and Pawcatuck 
        Rivers, Rhode Island and Connecticut.--The following 
        segments:
                  (A) The approximately 10 mile segment of the 
                Beaver River from the headwaters in Exeter, 
                Rhode Island, to the confluence with the 
                Pawcatuck River.
                  (B) The approximately 5-mile segment of the 
                Chipuxet River from Hundred Acre Pond to the 
                outlet into Worden Pond.
                  (C) The approximately 10-mile segment of the 
                upper Queen River from the headwaters to the 
                Usquepaugh Dam in South Kingstown, Rhode 
                Island, including all tributaries of the upper 
                Queen River.
                  (D) The approximately 5-mile segment of the 
                lower Queen (Usquepaugh) River from the 
                Usquepaugh Dam to the confluence with the 
                Pawcatuck river.
                  (E) The approximately 11-mile segment of the 
                upper Wood River from the headwaters to Skunk 
                Hill Road in Richmond and Hopkinton, Rhode 
                Island, including all tributaries of the upper 
                Wood River.
                  (F) The approximately 10-mile segment of the 
                lower Wood River from Skunk Hill Road to the 
                confluence with the Pawcatuck River.
                  (G) The approximately 28-mile segment of the 
                Pawcatuck River from Worden Pond to Nooseneck 
                Hill Road (Rhode Island Rte 3) in Hopkinton and 
                Westerly, Rhode Island.
                  (H) The approximately 7-mile segment of lower 
                Pawcatuck Rock, Stonington, Connecticut, and 
                Westerly Rhode Island.
    (b)(1) The studies of rivers named in subparagraphs (28) 
through (55) of subsection (a) of this section shall be 
completed and reports thereon submitted by not later than 
October 2, 1979:

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (20) Beaver, Chipuxet, Queen, Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers, 
Rhode Island and Connecticut.--Not later than 3 years after the 
date on which funds are made available to carry out this 
paragraph, the Secretary of the Interior shall--
          (A) complete the study of the Beaver, Cipuxet, Queen, 
        Wood, and Pawcatuck Rivers, Rhode Island and 
        Connecticut, described if subsection (a)(141); and
          (B) submit to the appropriate committees of Congress 
        a report that describes the results of the study.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                                  
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