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Illinois' senior senator stopped in Quincy Wednesday to take part in the 2008 Flood Forum.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin offered an update on the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) and what impact that will have on the Mississippi River and its locks, dams and levees.
Durbin says WRDA is essential legislation. President Bush vetoed it only to see it get a Congressional override.
"We want to work in a positive way, in an environmental way, to build up the ecosystem around our rivers, which will reduce the impact of flood events," Durbin said. "We can do that with thoughtful investment and in the process, we can encourage habitat and the development and protection of species that are critcially important for our biological future."
Durbin said with the frequency of record floods, the nation must plan ahead.
"When we take a look at investing in America, we have had to do it with an eye toward more weather challenges than we've had in the past," he said. "That means making certain that 70-year-old locks and dams can meet the needs of today's commerce and also weather the storms of the 21st Century."
Durbin said he was late for the forum because he was discussing the delay of WRDA appropriations with Congressional leaders. Durbin said that are going to wait until February, after a new president is sworn in.
Quincy University hosted the event as an opportunity for the public to learn what the flood did to the region and perhaps what it did for the region.
Former Mayor Chuck Scholz was the moderator and the panel included Mike Klingner of UMIRMA, Mayor John Spring, GREDF President Jim Mentesti.