article: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE This Act may be cited as the ``Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Act of 1999''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. (a) Findings.--Congress finds that-- (1) the Lake Pontchartrain Basin forms one of the largest natural estuaries in the continental United States; (2) the Basin drains an area of almost 5,000 square miles from 16 Louisiana parishes and 4 Mississippi counties; (3) the ecology of the Basin provides the diverse essential habitat that supports countless species of fish, birds, mammals, and plants; (4) the extensive wetland of the Basin provides the primary nursery for much of the seafood harvested in the Gulf Coast; (5) conditions resulting from urbanization, increasing population growth and development, sewage and septic tank discharges, animal waste, herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, stormwater runoff, sediments from construction, and sewage from fishing camps and residences should be addressed to improve the environment and ecology of the Basin; (6) a major source of pollution in the Basin is raw or partially treated human waste from-- (A) communities with poor sewer systems or without sewer systems; and (B) septic tank systems that are not operating properly; (8) stormwater discharges that combine with effluent from sanitary discharges from broken lines are channeled directly into Lake Pontchartrain or adjacent bodies of water; (7) a number of local government agencies are working on restoration efforts that have a direct impact on water quality in the Basin, including the Department of Environmental Quality of Louisiana, the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board, Jefferson Parish, and other governmental agencies; (8) a number of non-regulating organizations, such as the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation and the University of New Orleans, are playing substantial, essential roles in restoration efforts; (9) the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, the University of New Orleans, and the Regional Planning Commission for Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and St. Tammany Parishes, Louisiana, have entered into a memorandum of understanding to better facilitate the restoration and preservation of water quality and habitats throughout the Basin; and (10) the programs and activities of the various Federal agencies involved with administration of laws, programs, and assets that affect the water quality of the Basin, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of the Interior, and other agencies, lack coordination and sufficient resources to measure and remediate water quality problems in the Basin. (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are-- (1) to coordinate the restoration efforts of Federal, State, and local agencies and organizations in the restoration of the Basin; (2) to establish the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program in the office of the Environmental Protection Agency; and (3) to authorize and provide resources for restoration projects in the Basin. SEC. 3. LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN. Title I of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``SEC. 121. LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN. ``(a) Definitions.--In this section: ``(1) Basin.--The term `Basin' means the Lake Pontchartrain Basin located in the State of Louisiana. ``(2) Council.--The term `Council' means the Lake Pontchartrain Executive Council established under subsection (b)(3)(A). ``(3) Management plan--The term `management plan' means the watershed management plan developed under subsection (b)(3)(B). ``(4) Program.--The term `program' means the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program established under subsection (b)(1). ``(b) Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program.-- ``(1) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall establish within the Environmental Protection Agency the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program. ``(2) Purposes.--The purposes of the program shall be-- ``(A) to coordinate efforts among and provide resources to the various Federal, State, and local governmental agencies and nonregulatory organizations to reduce pollution in the Basin; and ``(B) to restore the Basin to ecological health. ``(3) Administration.-- ``(A) Lake pontchartrain executive council.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall establish the Lake Pontchartrain Executive Council, to be composed of-- ``(i) the Administrator; ``(ii) the Governor of the State of Louisiana; ``(iii) the Chairman of the Regional Planning Commission; ``(iv) the Chancellor of the University of New Orleans; and ``(v) the Executive Director of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation. ``(B) Management plan.-- ``(i) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator, in cooperation with appropriate Federal, State, and local authorities, shall assist the Council in developing a comprehensive, multiuse, watershed management plan for the restoration and protection of the Basin. ``(ii) Assistance.--Assistance provided by the Administrator under subparagraph (A) shall include grants for and technical assistance in-- ``(I) developing an annual work plan endorsed by the Council; ``(II) supporting Basin-wide environmental monitoring and research to provide technical and scientific information necessary to support management decisions; ``(III) developing a comprehensive research plan to address the technical needs of the program; and ``(IV) recommending restoration projects for implementation by the State of Louisiana, parishes, and nongovernmental entities. ``(c) Restoration Projects.--In accordance with the management plan, the Administrator shall provide funding and oversight to carry out voluntary restoration projects for the Basin that-- ``(1) address human waste problems in the Basin by providing a cost-sharing construction and education program that offers incentives to parishes and local communities to improve sewage treatment facilities and procedures (including the continuation of funding for the inflow and infiltration projects of Orleans and Jefferson Parishes, Louisiana); ``(2) provide critical assistance to agricultural operators designed to address and curb agricultural runoff into the Basin; ``(3) provide for the rerouting of discharges from selected pumping stations through adjacent wetland, using existing canals and small water control structures, in order to use natural wetland to filter pollutants from urban stormwater; ``(4) improve Basin water quality-- ``(A) by eliminating discharges of raw or partially treated sewage from fishing camps and residences; ``(B) where there are approved municipal or community sewage systems, by providing tie-ins from those systems for fishing camps and residences; and ``(C) by establishing new sanitation and sewage systems where needed; ``(5) reverse the trend of decreasing acreage of coastal wetland in the Basin by creating new sustainable wetland habitat; and ``(6) retain the integrity of natural structural elements in the coastal landscape, such as ridges and barrier islands, in order to reduce storm surge impacts to essential habitats and human infrastructure. ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary, to remain available until expended-- ``(1) to continue to provide priority funding for the New Orleans Inflow and Infiltration Project sponsored by the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board and Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; and ``(2) to carry out subsections (b) and (c).''.
summary: Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Act of 1999 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program within EPA. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish the Lake Pontchartrain Executive Council; (2) assist the Council in developing a comprehensive, multi-use watershed management plan for the restoration and protection of the Basin; and (3) provide funding and oversight for voluntary restoration projects for the Basin. Authorizes appropriations to: (1) continue to provide priority funding for the New Orleans Inflow and Infiltration Project sponsored by the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board and Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; and (2) carry out this Act.