E250 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD -- Extensions of Remarks February 12, 2009
PRODUCED WATER UTILIZATION ACT OF 2009 SPEECH OF HON. PHIL GINGREY OF GEORGIA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Wednesday, February 11, 2009 Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 469-the Produced Water Utilization Act of 2009-introduced by the Ranking Member of the Science Committee, Mr.
HALL of Texas. I want to thank Mr. HALL for constructing this thoughtful legislation and for the constant leadership he has provided to both Energy and Commerce Committee and the Science Committee.
Produced water is comprised mainly of salty water that is trapped in reservoir rock below ground. It comes to the surface when drilling oil or natural gas and usually contains oil barrels of produced water are captured for every barrel of oil derived, and that results in a total of 15-20 billion barrels of produced water generated here in the United States on an annual basis.
Mr. Speaker, as the population of the United States continues to grow, additional potable water supplies will be required to sustain individuals, agriculture, and industry all over the country. H.R. 469 represents an innovative way in which we can utilize the produced water resources that would otherwise go to waste.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation directs the Secretary of Energy to establish a program for research and development to harvest produced water in an environmentally safe way for irrigation, municipal, and industrial purposes.
Once this program is established, we can help address the droughts that are occurring across the country-including in my Northwest Georgia district-simply by providing the public with additional water resources.
Mr. Speaker, I have to commend my colleague from Texas on his leadership on this issue and working in a bipartisan manner to bring it to the floor today.
I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R.
469.
f RECOGNIZING THE 55TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICANS TO JOIN THE BALTIMORE CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT HON. ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS OF MARYLAND IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Thursday, February 12, 2009 Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, Black History Month allows this nation to pay homage to pioneering African Americans who have enriched our lives through their leadership and courage. Citizens across the globe are familiar with the legacies of Frederick Douglass, HarParks, and now President Barack Obama.
However, today I rise to recognize some lesser known, but equally important figures in history: the 41 African American males that integrated the Baltimore City Fire Department in the early 1950's.
On June 19, 1953, the Board of Fire Commissioners voted to hire ``Colored'' firemen. In
HONORING JOHN D. DINGELL FOR HOLDING THE RECORD AS THE LONGEST SERVING MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SPEECH OF HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY OF NEW YORK IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Wednesday, February 11, 2009 Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, as do so many, to honor JOHN DINGELL as he achieves a great milestone: our longest-serving House member.
In December 1955, at the age of 29, JOHN won a special election to replace his father.
19,420 days later, we honor him and his spectacular record in serving the people of the United States and of his Michigan district.
In December 1955-just to give you a for sense of the eras, then and now-Rosa Parks and metals from production. Approximately 10 took a stand by refusing to give up her seat on a bus home from work in Montgomery, Ala bama.
Today, as we honor JOHN, we have an Afri can-American President.
People make change-and JOHN DINGELL has made more than his share.
As Chairman, now Chairman Emeritus, of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, he has carried perhaps the broadest portfolio of any House member in history, from energy, trade and telecommunications to Medicare, Medicaid, consumer protection and government oversight and investigations-Energy and Commerce handled up to 40% of all House legislation in some sessions.
An avid outdoorsman and former forest ranger, JOHN was an ``environmentalist'' before the word ``environmentalist'' existed.
He was instrumental in the passage of some of our nation's most important environ mental laws, including the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the 1990 Clean Air Act.
And JOHN almost single-handedly has created the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, which began in 2001 with some 400 acres and has grown since then to encompass over 4,000 acres from River Rouge to Lake Erie.
He has been steadfast in supporting health care for all Americans. Each Congress, he sponsors a national health insurance plan-picking up the baton from his father who first introduced it in 1943. He fought for the Patient's Bill of Rights and the Children's Health Insurance Program. And he was the presiding officer as this House passed Medicare in 1965.
Together, JOHN and I worked on identifying the persistence of the ``glass ceiling'' which limits the advancement of women in the workplace.
JOHN could not have known in 1955 the changes he would see, and the change he would make, as a member of this body. It has been a career of accomplishment-but now, riet Tubman, Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa also, it is a career of longevity.
Martin Luther King once said ``It is the quality, not the longevity of one's life that is important.'' But JOHN DINGELL has had BOTH quality and longevity. May he keep up the great work.
JOHN, please accept my humble congratulations and extend my love to Debbie and your family.
Like W.E.B. DuBois and the other founders back in 1909, we, too, must answer the call.
In our own time, we must continue the work of creating a better, more unified nation-an America that will truly assure liberty, justice and opportunity for all.
We, too, have a legacy of justice and opportunity to create-for our children and for the generations of Americans yet to be born.
f HONORING THE NAACP ON ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY SPEECH OF ´ HON. LINDA T. SANCHEZ OF CALIFORNIA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Tuesday, February 10, 2009 ´ Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Mr.
Speaker, I rise today to celebrate and honor the 100th anniversary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP. Today, February 12, 2009, marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the NAACP and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. For a Nation that is less than 250 years old, the centennial of the NAACP is a major milestone.
I shudder to imagine what this country would look like if our history did not include the stories and struggles of people like Frederick Douglass, Rosa Parks, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., our own Representative JOHN LEWIS, and many countless others who have fought and continue to fight for equal rights and equal opportunity.
The NAACP's roots date back to the ``Niagra Movement'' of 1905 when thirty-two prominent African Americans met to organize and call for the end of racial inequality. A forceful agent for change, the NAACP was the leading party behind many accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement, including the landmark case Brown v. the Board of Education which ended racial segregation in our schools.
The Niagra and Civil Rights Movements were not the first calls for freedom and equality in our nation's history and will not be the last. But their success provided a blueprint for future generations to follow, an example of hope to all those who seek to secure the basic freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution.
Today, the NAACP continues to cement its reputation as a trailblazer for basic civil and human rights. Led by its young new president, Benjamin Jealous, the NAACP has refocused its objectives on resolving wide disparities in access to jobs and healthcare among Americans. During the next 100 years, I have no doubt that the NAACP will lead many more breakthroughs in civil and human rights.
This anniversary gives all Americans an opportunity to recognize and learn about AfricanAmerican history, which is also the history of the United States. I am proud to do my part to promote and honor the contributions made by the NAACP and the African American community to our great Nation.
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