Date: 1999-04-21
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I rise today in support of H.R. 1184. a bill to reauthorize the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Programa multiagency effort to reduce the terrible effects of earthquakes on life and property. Of particular interest to the Resources Committee. the bill would authorize appropriations for FY 2000 and 2001 to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to carry out its responsibilities under the Act. including a related USGS grant program and another program to develop a prototype realtime seismic warning system. Finally the bill would require the USGS Director to establish a Scientific Earthquake Studies Advisory Committee. The Clinton Administration has testified in strong support of reauthorization of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. This program has made significant progress and contributions in the reduction of earthquake risks during its 23year history. While the Resources Committees jurisdiction in this matter is limited to activities of the USGS. the effort to reduce earthquake risks is shared among other federal agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency. the National Science Foundation. and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. As a native Californian. I am grateful to the fine work done by all of these agencies. Under this critical program. USGS produces earthquake hazard assessments and national seismic hazard maps for earthquake loss reduction. provides timely and accurate notifications of earthquakes and information on their location. size. and damage potential. and cardes out studies and research on earthquake occurrence and effects. For example. during 19992001. USGS will develop more detailed. larger scale products that depict variations in the expected ground shaking across the San Francisco Bay urban area. The data compiled will enable local officials and planners to see probabilities of earthquake occurrence. amplification or extension of shaking caused by geologic deposits and structures. and susceptibility of these deposits to liquefy and slide during an earthquake. In another major partnership authorized by this program. the USGS. National Science Foundation. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. and the Southern California Earthquake Center are installing a stateoftheart geodetic network to monitor fault movements and Earth strain in Southern California. Utilizing a satellite navigation system operated by the Department of Defense. which permits points on the Earths surface to be located to a precision of a millimeter. the network will track the movement of 250 stations concentrated along a corridor through the Los Angeles basin. but also extending south to the Mexican border and east to the Colorado River. Basically. the data derived from this effort will not only improve general understanding of largescale tectonic processes responsible for earthquakes but will also provide indications where earthquakes might occur in the near future. Earthquakes are one of the most devastating natural hazards known to man and pose a severe threat to life and property in many regions of our Nation and around the worldand in particular in my home state of California. The United States has a fundamental responsibility and selfinterest in reducing the risks associated with earthquakes. Mitigation and finding new applications should continue to be an integral factor in efforts to lessen the terrible consequences of earthquakes on our populace. At the same time. we must continue to develop a strong scientific understanding of where earthquakes will occur. why they occur. how big they can be. and to learn more about the effects that they will generate. Basic research and monitoring have contributed significantly to our improved mitigation capacity. Good science has also led to application and informed decisionmaking. The USGS Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program addresses many of the more serious earthquake risks. and I am pleased to support its reauthorization. I recommend an "aye" vote on its passage.