Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I rise today to object to the sweeping, permanent exemptions from environmental laws at military bases included in this Defense authorization bill.
This set of provisions, the so-called "Range and Readiness Preservation Initiative," would change critical provisions of the Clean Air Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and the Endangered Species Act. These changes would remove Federal and State authority to require the Department of Defense to clean up its thousands of contaminated sites nationwide.
I am a staunch supporter of a strong military and a strong national defense. Yet the changes that have been included in this bill go well beyond any consideration of military preparedness, are overboard, and are ill-advised.
Environmental laws already include provisions for exemptions in the event of a national security issue. The proposals are rendered even more questionable by the fact that the Defense Department has not yet found a compelling case to plead for such an exemption. EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman has testified before Congress that compliance with environmental regulations has never impeded military readiness.
Furthermore, these blanket exemptions for the Department of Defense from environmental statutes are inappropriate. I have grave concerns regarding the adverse environmental impact of this initiative. This legislation would relax current requirements protecting wildlife habitats on military installations, as well as requirements to clean up contaminated sites and control air emissions. The Department of Defense is our nation's biggest polluter. I believe that, unless national security is directly affected, the Department of Defense should be required to comply with Federal environmental laws.
I call on my colleagues to strike these provisions.