31 



go back and look at the creeks and water these plants; that the 

 youngsters that are growing up have positive role models to look 

 at. 



When I first started at the Corps myself — and I am a product of 

 some of these local underdeveloped urbans — when I first started at 

 the Corps nine years ago, I came from a poor basin background. 

 Being involved in teaming with friends at urban creek, I was able 

 to expand my horizons on what life was really about. The creeks 

 definitely have impacted my career, where I had a chance to go 

 back in the water to figure out what I am about. Without the wa- 

 terways and the creeks, we are destroying our fishery habitats and 

 things that make the world go around. 



Another point I want to stress is the community involvement. 

 There are several ways that the creeks have impacted our commu- 

 nities. One is by going in and soliciting information on what the 

 community likes themselves, what they would like to see in terms 

 of placing structures around the community; two, we are involved 

 now, or Corps members are involved in training at local colleges, 

 California State, Berkeley, University of California, throughout the 

 community. 



With that point, and kind of aiming at what I would like to en- 

 tertain as questions toward the end, the passage of this bill creates 

 jobs, and I want to really, really point out my personal opinion of 

 being here is that I am a product of the system, and if somehow 

 that I can paint this picture and take questions later, we have 

 graduated in terms of the last several months over 20 CRUW mem- 

 bers in the GED program. 



Without the passage of the bill, money to support these creeks 

 and things like that, those are 20 or 30 people we would not have 

 had a chance to touch. So it is very important to me to highlight 

 the importance of the passage of the bill, H.R. 4289. Thank you. 



[The statement of Mr. Archie can be found at the end of the 

 hearing.] 



Ms. FURSE. Thank you, and we will have questions for all of the 

 witnesses. 



Mr. Don McKenzie is here with the Wildlife Management Insti- 

 tute and we look forward to your testimony. 



STATEMENT OF DON MCKENZIE, CONSERVATION POLICY 

 COORDINATOR, WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE 



Mr. McKenzie. Thank you, I am Don McKenzie, Conservation 

 Policy Coordinator, with the Wildlife Management Institute. WMI 

 appreciates this opportunity to support H.R. 4289, the Waterways 

 Restoration Act of 1994. The Institute is a private, nonprofit sci- 

 entific and educational organization staffed by professional natural 

 resource managers. We have been dedicated to the restoration and 

 improved management of wildlife and related natural resources 

 since 1911. 



We believe the watershed approach to managing natural re- 

 sources conceptually is the best perspective from which to identify 

 water-related resource problems as well as to plan and implement 

 solutions. However, we believe equally strongly that the implemen- 

 tation of a Soil Conservation Service's Small Watershed Program 



