WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Susan Collins today met with Idaho Governor Dirk Kempthorne to request his support for the Penobscot River Restoration Project and other important issues in Maine. Kempthorne is President Bush’s nominee to be Secretary of the Interior. The Department of Interior is responsible for managing our national parks and public lands, conserving our natural resources, and pursuing environmentally responsible energy development on federal lands and waters.
“I am pleased to have had the opportunity to request Governor Kempthorne's support for the Penobscot River Restoration Project, Acadia National Park, our state and local parks, and Maine's national wildlife refuges," said Senator Collins. "The Penobscot River Project is the most important environmental restoration project east of the Mississippi. The Department of Interior helped negotiate this historic agreement, and is now time that they step up to the plate and help get it funded."
Senator Collins gave Governor Kempthorne a presentation on the Penobscot River Restoration Project and requested that the Department make a serious contribution to the $25 million that is necessary for the first stage of the project. Senators Collins and Snowe have secured $2.5 million for this project over the last two fiscal years and have requested more funding for FY 2007.
"I explained to Governor Kempthorne that this project is truly a remarkable example of how local communities, the state, the Penobscot Indian Nation, an energy company, and several environmental groups all worked together with the Department of Interior to reach agreement. Now we need to get it funded.”
Successful implementation of the Penobscot River Restoration Project will revive native fisheries, such as the endangered Atlantic salmon, as well as social, cultural, and economic traditions of the Penobscot River. Other issues Senators Collins discussed with Governor Kempthorne include funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, National Wildlife Refuges, and National Park operations and maintenance.
If confirmed by the Senate, Governor Kempthorne will become the 49th Secretary of Interior and will replace Gale Norton who resigned in March.