Plum Island is extremely valuable to our area, both as a provider of 400 jobs at the Plum Island Animal Disease Research Center and as prime habitat for rare animals and plants. I strongly support efforts to preserve critical biodiversity and prevent further development on Plum Island.
Therefore, this week I introduced new bipartisan legislation that would eliminate the current requirement in law mandating the public sale of the island to partially offset the cost of the National Bio and Agro Defense Facility, a proposed new $1.2 research lab in Kansas. Some have even proposed building up to 500 new homes on the island--an absolutely unacceptable outcome.
My "Save, Don't Sell Plum Island" legislation will permanently decouple the future of Plum Island from the troubled Kansas facility, and will eliminate the wrongheaded requirement in law that the island be sold at public auction for a fraction of its true worth to our nation. Read more in Associated Press coverage.
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I was honored to announce my legislation in Orient on Tuesday with a broad coalition of local officials and environmental leaders in attendance. You can watch a video of the event on my YouTube Channel.
This bill is an important step in the fight to preserve Plum Island as a research jobs engine and wildlife conservation area. I am working hard to build support for "Save, Don't Sell Plum Island" and I will keep you posted as the effort progresses.
