NEMW Coalition Member Senator Tom Carper (DE) and six of his Senate colleagues introduced legislation that would improve and preserve the overall wellness of the Delaware River watershed. The Delaware River Basin Conservation Act of 2014, co-sponsored by NEMW Coalition members Sens. Robert Menendez (NJ), Chuck Schumer (NY), and Robert Casey (PA), and NEMW Delegation members Sens. Chris Coons (DE), Cory Booker (NJ) and Kirsten Gillibrand (NY), strengthens the environmental health of the watershed while also spurring the Delaware River watershed region's economy. The Delaware River Basin Conservation Act of 2014 would establish the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The program would implement a coordinated approach, requiring the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service director to adopt a basin-wide plan that sustains and enhances the Delaware River basin restoration and protection efforts. The program would support projects from federal, state, and local governments and stakeholders, ensuring that existing successful restoration plans are leveraged. "By investing in our watershed, we are investing in a resource that not only powers our environment and our local communities, but also fuels our economy," Sen. Carper said. "The Delaware River watershed supports jobs at ports and in marine transportation, jobs in agriculture, hunting and fishing, jobs in recreation and parks and tourism, and jobs for folks who work every day to safeguard our water quality and water supply. This partnership supports our local economy by keeping our air, water and land clean, and protecting the overall health of this vital resource." The bill is similar to legislation H.R. 644 introduced by Representative John Carney (DE) in 2013, which has 21 co-sponsors (11R, 10D). NEMWI has helped coordinate numerous Congressional briefings around this legislation, and conducted research to document ecosystem goods and services unique to each Congressional District in the Delaware River Basin.

For more information, contact Erik Hagen, Sr. Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.