S-3514.2 _______________________________________________
SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 8016
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State of Washington 55th Legislature 1998 Regular Session
By Senators Jacobsen, Oke, Spanel and Kline
Read first time 01/12/98. Referred to Committee on Natural Resources & Parks.
TO THE HONORABLE WILLIAM J. CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED:
We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:
WHEREAS, Invasions by nonindigenous aquatic species have dramatic ecological and economic impact on marine, estuarine, and freshwater systems throughout the world, and ballast water discharged from ships is the single largest source of these invasions; and
WHEREAS, Billions of gallons of ballast water may be discharged from incoming ships each year in the ports of the Columbia river, the coast of Washington, and Puget Sound; and
WHEREAS, Increased global trade between Washington and foreign ports increases the already high vulnerability of Washington to invasions of nonindigenous species from ballast water; and
WHEREAS, The zebra mussel Dreissena has invaded the Great Lakes and Mississippi river drainage as a result of ballast water discharged from ships originating in foreign ports, causing billions of dollars of economic damage to those regions, and is increasingly likely to invade the waters of Washington state; and
WHEREAS, Estuarine-dependent fisheries of the Pacific Coast are also at risk from the estuarine European green crab, which is already established in Oregon; and
WHEREAS, One ballast water introduction of a predaceous freshwater shrimp discovered in the Columbia river in the fall of 1995 may threaten a major food source of juvenile salmon, and provides evidence that we must address the economic harm that may occur from the discharge of contaminated ballast water; and
WHEREAS, Nonnative aquatic plants degrade water quality, recreational opportunities, and fish habitats, and also reduce flow through conveyance systems and block irrigation systems; and
WHEREAS, The nonindigenous aquatic plants Hydrilla and Spartina have invaded Washington's freshwater and estuarine systems, causing severe ecological and economic damage; and
WHEREAS, Any future invasion of the Washington aquatic ecosystems could have catastrophic ecological and economic impacts for the region; and
WHEREAS, Preventing more of these introductions to our waters is critical;
NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the Congress of the United States appropriates resources authorized for full implementation of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-646), as amended by the National Invasive Species Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-332), that:
(1) Prohibits the discharge of ballast water that originated in a foreign port into a river, estuary or bay or the Pacific Ocean within the territorial limits of the United States;
(2) Requires ballast water that originated in a foreign port to be discharged at sea and replaced with ocean water by vessels that enter the waters of the United States; and
(3) Charges the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force with addressing existing and potential problems with invasive species in the United States, including the West Coast.
BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable William J. Clinton, President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.
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