WASHINGTON – Senate Energy & Natural Resources Chairman Pete V. Domenici today suggested that the federal government may need to establish a major federal water program to assist communities, particularly small rural towns, in building infrastructure they require to ensure adequate water supplies. Domenici made the suggestion while presiding over a full committee hearing on western water challenges today at 10 a.m. in SD-366. Domenici also urged administration officials to support water supply and technology initiatives he has advocated to increase water supplies to the West. Those initiatives include a multi-agency water desalination effort and legislation to accelerate eradication of nonnative species, such as salt cedar, along western waterways. Domenici’s statement: “Water continues to be the backbone of our economy. Safe and adequate supplies of water are vital for agriculture, industry, recreation, and human consumption. In addition to protecting our existing water supply, we need to explore new ideas for expanding that supply and creating new sources of water. This means that we need to invest today in research for the advancement of state-of-the-art desalination, demineralization, water reuse and other purification technologies.” The hearing featured testimony from Bennett Raley, Assistant Interior Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agriculture Services and representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Center for Environmental Prediction. ###