II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1266 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to build 

on and help coordinate funding for restoration and protection efforts 

of the 4-State Delaware River Basin region, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2011 

Mr. CARPER (for himself, Mr. COONS, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. LAUTENBERG, 

Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. CASEY) 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 establish a program 

to build on and help coordinate funding for restoration 

and protection efforts of the 4-State Delaware River 

Basin region, 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 ‘‘Delaware River Basin 

5 Conservation Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) the Delaware River Basin is a national 

2 treasure of great cultural, environmental, and eco3 logical importance; 

4 (2) the Basin contains over 12,500 square miles 

5 of land in the States of Delaware, New Jersey, New 

6 York, and Pennsylvania, including nearly 800 square 

7 miles of bay and more than 2,000 tributary rivers 

8 and streams; 

9 (3) the Basin is home to more than 8,000,000 

10 people who depend on the Delaware River and the 

11 Delaware Bay as an economic engine, a place of 

12 recreation, and a vital habitat for fish and wildlife; 

13 (4) the Basin provides clean drinking water to 

14 more than 15,000,000 people, including New York 

15 City, which relies on the Basin for approximately 

16 half of the drinking water supply of the city, and 

17 Philadelphia, whose most significant threat to the 

18 drinking water supply of the city is forest clearing 

19 in the Upper Basin, according to a study conducted 

20 by the Philadelphia Water Department; 

21 (5) almost 180 species of fish and wildlife are 

22 considered special status species in the Basin due to 

23 habitat loss and degradation, particularly sturgeon, 

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1 tified as unique species in need of habitat improve2 ment; 

3 (6) the Basin provides habitat for over 200 

4 resident and migrant fish species, includes signifi5 cant recreational fisheries, and is a prolific source of 

6 eastern oyster, blue crab, and the largest population 

7 of the American horseshoe crab; 

8 (7) as of the date of enactment of this Act, oys9 ter landings in the Delaware Bay are at 100,000 

10 bushels, down from the 500,000 bushels that were 

11 harvested in the 1980s, due, in part, to water pollu12 tion and disease; 

13 (8) the Delaware Bay has the second largest 

14 concentration of shorebirds in North America and is 

15 designated as 1 of the 4 most important shorebird 

16 migration sites in the world; 

17 (9) the Basin, 50 percent of which is forested, 

18 also has 1,000,000 acres of wetland, more than 

19 126,000 acres of which are recognized as inter20 nationally important, resulting in a landscape that 

21 provides essential ecosystem services, including 

22 recreation, commercial, and water quality benefits; 

23 (10) much of the remaining exemplary natural 

24 landscape in the Basin is vulnerable to further deg25 radation, as the Basin gains approximately 14 


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1 square miles of developed land annually, and with 

2 new development, urban watersheds are increasingly 

3 covered by impervious surfaces, amplifying the quan4 tity of polluted runoff into rivers and streams; 

5 (11) the Delaware River is the longest 

6 undammed river east of the Mississippi, and a crit7 ical component of the National Wild and Scenic Riv8 ers System in the Northeast; 

9 (12) management of water volume in the Basin 

10 is critical to flood mitigation and habitat for fish 

11 and wildlife, and following 3 major floods along the 

12 Delaware River since 2004, the Governors of the 

13 States of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and 

14 Pennsylvania have called for natural flood damage 

15 reduction measures to combat the problem, including 

16 restoring the function of riparian corridors; 

17 (13) the Delaware River Port Complex (includ18 ing docking facilities in the States of Delaware, New 

19 Jersey, and Pennsylvania) is the largest freshwater 

20 port in the world, the Port of Philadelphia handles 

21 the largest volume of international tonnage and 70 

22 percent of the oil shipped to the East Coast, and the 

23 Port of Wilmington, a full-service deepwater port 

24 and marine terminal, is the busiest terminal on the 

25 Delaware River, handling more than 400 vessels per 


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1 year with an annual import/export cargo tonnage of 

2 more than 4,000,000 tons; 

3 (14) the Delaware Estuary, where freshwater 

4 from the Delaware River mixes with saltwater from 

5 the Atlantic Ocean, is 1 of the largest and most 

6 complex of the 28 estuaries in the National Estuary 

7 Program, and the Partnership for the Delaware Es8 tuary works to improve the environmental health of 

9 the Delaware Estuary; 

10 (15) the Delaware River Basin Commission is a 

11 Federal-interstate compact government agency 

12 charged with overseeing a unified approach to man13 aging the river system and implementing important 

14 water resources management projects and activities 

15 throughout the Basin that are in the national inter16 est; and 

17 (16) restoration activities in the Basin are sup18 ported through several Federal and State agency 

19 programs, and funding for those important pro20 grams should continue and complement the estab21 lishment of the Delaware River Basin Restoration 

22 Program, which is intended to build on and help co23 ordinate restoration and protection funding mecha24 nisms at the Federal, State, regional, and local lev25 els. 


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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) BASIN.—The term ‘‘Basin’’ means the 4- 

4 State Delaware Basin region, including all of Dela5 ware Bay and portions of the States of Delaware, 

6 New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania located in 

7 the Delaware River watershed. 

8 (2) BASIN STATE.—The term ‘‘Basin State’’ 

9 means each of the States of Delaware, New Jersey, 

10 New York, and Pennsylvania. 

11 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

12 the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 

13 Service. 

14 (4) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 

15 means the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, a 

16 congressionally chartered foundation established by 

17 section 2 of the National Fish and Wildlife Founda18 tion Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701). 

19 (5) GRANT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘grant pro20 gram’’ means the Delaware River Basin restoration 

21 grant program established under section 5. 

22 (6) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 

23 the Delaware River Basin restoration program es24 tablished under section 4. 


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1 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di3 rector. 

4 (8) SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Service’’ means the 

5 United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

6 SEC. 4. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

8 amounts are made available to carry out this Act, the Sec9 retary shall establish a program to be known as the ‘‘Dela10 ware River Basin restoration program’’. 

11 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the program, the Sec12 retary shall— 

13 (1) draw on existing and new management 

14 plans for the Basin and work in consultation with 

15 applicable management entities, including represent16 atives of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, 

17 the Delaware River Basin Commission, the Federal 

18 Government, and other State and local governments, 

19 and regional and nonprofit organizations, as appro20 priate, to identify, prioritize, and implement restora21 tion and protection activities within the Basin; 

22 (2) adopt an investment strategy that— 

23 (A) supports the implementation of a 

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1 ties developed in accordance with paragraph 

2 (1); 

3 (B) targets cost-effective conservation 

4 projects; and 

5 (C) supports measurable conservation ef6 forts; 

7 (3) establish the grant program in accordance 

8 with section 5; and 

9 (4) provide for technical assistance in accord10 ance with this Act. 

11 (c) COORDINATION.—In establishing the program, 

12 the Secretary shall consult, as appropriate, with— 

13 (1) the heads of Federal agencies, including— 

14 (A) the Administrator of the Environ15 mental Protection Agency; 

16 (B) the Administrator of the National Oce17 anic Atmospheric Administration; 

18 (C) the Chief of the Natural Resource 

19 Conservation Service; 

20 (D) the Chief of Engineers of the United 

21 States Army Corps of Engineers; 

22 (E) the Director of the National Park 

23 Service; and 

24 (F) the head of any other applicable agen25 cy; 


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1 (2) the Governors of the Basin States; 

2 (3) the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary; 

3 (4) the Delaware River Basin Commission; 

4 (5) fish and wildlife joint venture partnerships; 

5 and 

6 (6) other public agencies and organizations with 

7 authority for the planning and implementation of 

8 conservation strategies in the Basin. 

9 (d) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program in10 clude— 

11 (1) coordinating restoration and protection ac12 tivities among Federal, State, local, and regional en13 tities and conservation partners throughout the 

14 Basin; 

15 (2) carrying out coordinated restoration and 

16 protection activities throughout the Basin and Basin 

17 States— 

18 (A) to sustain and enhance habitat restora19 tion and protection activities; 

20 (B) to sustain and enhance water quality 

21 improvements, including drinking water quality; 

22 (C) to sustain and enhance water manage23 ment and flood damage mitigation improve24 ments to benefit fish and wildlife habitat; 


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1 (D) to improve opportunities for public ac2 cess and recreation in the Basin; 

3 (E) to encourage environmentally sensitive 

4 land use planning and development; 

5 (F) to increase the capacity to implement 

6 coordinated restoration and protection activities 

7 in the Basin by conducting public outreach and 

8 education and promoting citizen involvement; 

9 and 

10 (G) to coordinate, conduct, and support 

11 the planning, monitoring, and research activi12 ties necessary to carry out coordinated restora13 tion and protection activities; and 

14 (3) providing competitive grants for technical 

15 assistance to carry out restoration and protection ac16 tivities in the Basin, with priority given to activities 

17 with multiple benefits, including habitat, water qual18 ity, and flood protection. 

19 SEC. 5. GRANTS AND ASSISTANCE. 

20 (a) DELAWARE RIVER BASIN RESTORATION PRO21 GRAM.—To the extent that funds are available to carry 

22 out this section, the Secretary shall establish a grant pro23 gram to be known as the ‘‘Delaware River Basin restora24 tion grant program’’ to provide competitive matching 

25 grants of varying amounts to State and local governments, 


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1 nonprofit organizations, community organizations, institu2 tions of higher education, and other eligible entities to 

3 carry out activities described in section 4(d). 

4 (b) CRITERIA.—The Secretary, in consultation with 

5 the organizations described in section 4(c), shall develop 

6 criteria for the grant program to help ensure that activi7 ties funded under this section accomplish 1 or more of 

8 the following: 

9 (1) Restoration or protection of fish and wildlife 

10 species and the habitats of those species. 

11 (2) Improvement or protection of water quality 

12 by reducing nonpoint and point source pollutants. 

13 (3) Reduction or improvement of the manage14 ment of water volume and flooding. 

15 (4) Inclusion of priority needs or actions identi16 fied in the single investment strategy adopted under 

17 section 4(b)(2). 

18 (5) Inclusion of restoration and protection ac19 tivities with multiple benefits in the Basin, including 

20 habitat, water quality, and flood damage reduction. 

21 (c) COST SHARING.— 

22 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

23 the cost of a project funded under the grant pro24 gram shall not exceed 75 percent of the total cost 

25 of the activity, as determined by the Secretary. 


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1 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

2 share of the cost of a project funded under the grant 

3 program may be provided in cash or in the form of 

4 an in-kind contribution of services or materials. 

5 (d) ADMINISTRATION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may enter 

7 into an agreement to manage the grant program 

8 with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation or 

9 a similar organization with applicable expertise. 

10 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary enters into an 

11 agreement under paragraph (1), the organization se12 lected shall— 

13 (A) for each fiscal year, receive amounts to 

14 carry out this section in an advance payment of 

15 the entire amount on October 1, or as soon as 

16 practicable thereafter, of that fiscal year; 

17 (B) invest and reinvest those amounts for 

18 the benefit of the grant program; and 

19 (C) otherwise administer the grant pro20 gram to support partnerships between the pub21 lic and private sectors in accordance with this 

22 Act. 

23 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary enters 

24 into an agreement with the Foundation under para25 graph (1), any amounts received by the Foundation 


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1 under this section shall be subject to the National 

2 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 

3 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), excluding section 10(a) of that 

4 Act (16 U.S.C. 3709(a)). 

5 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may 

6 provide, or provide for, technical assistance to carry out 

7 this section, on a nonreimbursable basis, to— 

8 (1) other Federal agencies; 

9 (2) State and local governments; 

10 (3) nonprofit organizations; 

11 (4) community organizations; 

12 (5) institutions of higher education; or 

13 (6) other entities, as the Secretary determines 

14 to be appropriate. 

15 SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

16 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

17 of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall 

18 submit to Congress a report on the implementation of this 

19 Act, including a description of each project that has re20 ceived funding under this Act. 

21 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro23 priated to the Secretary to carry out this Act $5,000,000 

24 for each of fiscal years 2012 through 2017. 


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1 (b) USE.—Of any amount made available for each 

2 fiscal year, the Secretary shall use at least 75 percent to 

3 carry out the grant program and to provide, or provide 

4 for, technical assistance under section 5(e). 

Æ 


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