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• Our once world class salmon fishery of the Pacific northwest 

 is on the verge of extinction, threatening what once was only a few 

 years ago a one billion dollar enterprise. 



This Committee has played a major role in enacting environmentally- 

 sound conservation programs through the Farm Bill legislation of 

 1985 and 1990. Now we urge the Committee to make polluted 

 runoff prevention one of its priorities and support strengthening 

 amendments to the CWA. 



Congress Must Provide EPA, USDA, and the States With a 

 Stronger Mandate to Prevent Polluted Runoff 



The Problem 



Federal programs designed to prevent polluted runoff have not done 

 so effectively to date. The primary tool has been Section 319 of the 

 CWA and its predecessor. Section 208. These programs have 

 financed considerable state planning for prevention of polluted 

 runoff, but little implementation. Specifically, Section 319 lacks any 

 mandatory framework or plan implementation requirements. 

 Furthermore. Section 319 has received inadequate funding. Only 

 now, with an increased priority from the Clinton Administration 

 (Congress approved $80 million for FY 1994 and the Administration 

 proposes a level of $100 million for FY 1995) is Section 319 

 beginning to approach the level of funding that is needed. 



Similarly, the other major set of programs for preventing polluted 

 runoff, the 1990 Farm Bill programs, have suffered from weak 

 implementation and inadequate funding. The Conservation 

 Compliance Program (CCP) for controlling soil erosion has been 

 applied to vast expanses of agricultural land nationwide, but 

 enforcement and compliance appear to be weak in many areas. Two 

 programs with great potential for helping stem polluted runoff, the 

 Wetlands Reserve Program and the Water Quality Incentive Program 

 (WQIP) have been funded minimally, highlighted by zero direct 

 funding for the WQIP program since its enactment in 1990. 



Without a strong federal mandate, the states, with a few notable 

 exceptions, have not implemented meaningful polluted runoff 

 programs on their own. The Chesapeake Bay watershed states have 

 begun to take some meaningful steps to control sediment and . 



