CLAYTON, New York (WWNY) – The St. Lawrence River is a big attraction here in the North Country.
But if an oil spill were to happen, as it did nearly four decades ago, Save the River Executive Director John Peach says it would damage the environment.
“The oil went way down river, it got all over the rocks, the birds, it was a mess. It was horrible for the economy that entire summer,” said Peach.
The House of Representatives approved a bill on Tuesday: the Coast Guard Authorization Act for 2022. Part of that bill includes protection for the St. Lawrence River.
It would require the Coast Guard to study the effects of oil spills and help in the clean up process. This is something the Coast Guard already does for the Great Lakes and other U.S waterways.
“And It’s important to us because obviously we’re the end of the Great Lakes. All the shipping goes through here,” said Peach.
The provision was authored by North Country Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and has bi-partisan support. Stefanik introduced the bill with democrat Congressman Joe Morelle.
Congresswoman Stefanik says the river is important to protect, saying quote, “When I saw the St. Lawrence River was left out of the scope of the U.S. Coast Guard’s critical work, I took bipartisan action to preserve and protect our river communities against oil spills by supporting the research and response.”
Peach says it’s common for ice to be on the river this time of year, which makes it harder to clean up oil spills.
“And it’s very dangerous working when there’s ice on the shores or ice on the river,” said Peach.
Officials at Save the River say an oil spill hasn’t happened on the river since the 1970′s and having one today would pollute the water and put species at risk.
The bill now moves on to the Senate.
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