Subcom Energy and Mining Hse
<div class="author">
===<br />Jill.Strait@mail.house.gov; Spencer.Pederson@mail.house.gov press sec, tim scott, george radovitch?<br />3/13 <br /><p>A Republican spokesman for the House Natural Resources Committee is leaving to join Sen. Tim Scott's (R-S.C.) staff as legislative assistant
for energy and natural resources issues.
</p><p>
Spencer Pederson's first day with Scott, who serves on the Senate Energy
and Natural Resources Committee, is Thursday. He had been with the
House Natural Resources Committee for three years.
</p><div class="module">
<div>
<div>
<div>
<div style="" class="vbanner">
</div>
</div>
</div></div>
</div>
In an email, Pederson thanked his colleagues and committee Chairman Doc
Hastings (R-Wash.), and expressed excitement about his new post.<p>
"This opportunity brings exciting new challenges and gets me back into
the policy world that I left a few years ago ... and back in the
Minority, which will hopefully soon change!" he wrote.</p><p>
</p><h2 class="section-title">Spencer Pederson's Overview </h2>
<dl id="overview"><dt id="overview-summary-current-title" class="summary-current" style="display:block">
Current</dt><dd class="summary-current" style="display:block">
<ul class="current"><li>
Legislative Assistant to Sen. Tim Scott
<span class="at">at </span>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/united-states-senate?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">United States Senate</span></a>
</li></ul>
</dd><dt id="overview-summary-past-title" class="summary-past" style="display:block">
Past</dt><dd class="summary-past" style="display:block">
<ul class="past"><li>
Press Secretary for House Natural Resources Committee
<span class="at">at </span>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</li><li>
Communications Director for Rep. George Radanovich
<span class="at">at </span>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</li><li>
Legislative Assistant to Rep. George Radanovich
<span class="at">at </span>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</li></ul>
</dd><dt id="overview-summary-education-title" class="summary-education" style="display:block">
Education
</dt><dd class="summary-education" style="display:block">
<ul><li>
University of Redlands
</li></ul>
</dd><dt>
Connections
</dt><dd class="overview-connections">
<p>
<strong>500+</strong> connections
</p>
</dd><dt class="websites">Websites</dt><dd class="websites">
<ul><li>
<a href="http://www.linkedin.com/redir/redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnaturalresources%2Ehouse%2Egov%2F&urlhash=Bcm-" target="_blank" title="New window will open" name="overviewsite">
Company Website
</a>
</li></ul>
</dd></dl>
<div class="section subsection-reorder" id="profile-experience" style="display:block">
<div class="header">
<h2>Spencer Pederson's Experience</h2>
</div>
<div class="content vcalendar">
<div>
<div>
<div class="position first experience vevent vcard summary-current" style="display:block">
<div class="postitle">
<h3 class="false">
<span class="title">Legislative Assistant to Sen. Tim Scott</span>
</h3>
<h4><strong>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/united-states-senate?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">United States Senate</span></a>
</strong>
</h4>
</div>
<p class="orgstats organization-details current-position">
Government Agency; 1001-5000 employees;
Legislative Office industry
<br/> <abbr class="dtstart" title="2013-03-01">March 2013</abbr>
– <abbr class="dtstamp" title="2013-07-02">Present</abbr>
<span class="duration"><span class="value-title" title="P5M"> </span>(5 months)</span>
<span class="location">Washington D.C. Metro Area</span>
<br/> Energy, Natural Resources, Environment, Agriculture, Foreign Affairs, Defense, Homeland Security</p>
</div></div>
<div>
<div class="position experience vevent vcard summary-past" style="display:block">
<div class="postitle">
<h3 class="false">
<span class="title">Press Secretary for House Natural Resources Committee</span>
</h3>
<h4><strong>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</strong>
</h4>
</div>
<p class="orgstats organization-details past-position">
Government Agency; 10,001+ employees;
Legislative Office industry
<br/> <abbr class="dtstart" title="2010-02-01">February 2010</abbr>– <abbr class="dtend" title="2013-03-01">March 2013</abbr> <span class="duration"><span class="value-title" title="P3Y2M"> </span>(3 years 2 months)</span>
<span class="location">Washington D.C. Metro Area</span>
</p>
</div></div>
<div>
<div class="position experience vevent vcard summary-past" style="display:block">
<div class="postitle">
<h3 class="false">
<span class="title">Communications Director for Rep. George Radanovich</span>
</h3>
<h4><strong>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</strong>
</h4>
</div>
<p class="orgstats organization-details past-position">
Government Agency; 10,001+ employees;
Legislative Office industry
<br/> <abbr class="dtstart" title="2007-01-01">January 2007</abbr>– <abbr class="dtend" title="2010-02-01">February 2010</abbr> <span class="duration"><span class="value-title" title="P3Y2M"> </span>(3 years 2 months)</span>
<span class="location">Washington D.C. Metro Area</span>
</p>
</div></div>
<div>
<div class="position experience vevent vcard summary-past" style="display:block">
<div class="postitle">
<h3 class="false">
<span class="title">Legislative Assistant to Rep. George Radanovich</span>
</h3>
<h4><strong>
<a class="company-profile-public" href="http://www.linkedin.com/company/u.s.-house-of-representatives?trk=ppro_cprof"><span class="org summary">U.S. House of Representatives</span></a>
</strong>
</h4>
</div>
<p class="orgstats organization-details past-position">
Government Agency; 10,001+ employees;
Legislative Office industry
<br/> <abbr class="dtstart" title="2005-08-01">August 2005</abbr>– <abbr class="dtend" title="2010-02-01">February 2010</abbr> <span class="duration"><span class="value-title" title="P4Y7M"> </span>(4 years 7 months)</span>
<br/> Energy, Environment, Natural Resources, Consumer Protection, Trade, Climate Change</p>
</div></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>===
<a href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/subcommittees/subcommittee/?SubcommitteeID=5062">http://naturalresources.house.gov/subcommittees/subcommittee/?SubcommitteeID=5062</a>
bs:
<span id="ctl00_ctl28_ctl00_Text" class="middlecopy">Representative <font color="#FF0000">Doug
Lamborn</font> was first elected to represent Colorado’s 5th district in 2006.
Lamborn serves as <font color="#FF0000">Chairman of the Committee on Energy and Mineral
Resources </font>of the House Committee on Natural Resources. Additionally,
Representative Lamborn serves on the House Armed Services Committee and
House Veterans' Affairs Committee.
<p>Throughout his career in public service, Representative Lamborn has
been a leader on pro-family and small business issues, a strong advocate
for our men and women defending our nation in the military, and a
supporter of lower taxes, immigration reform, less government spending,
and protection of the Second Amendment.
Many of his principles and ideals coincide with the<font color="#FF0000"> Republican Study
Committee (RSC),</font> the caucus of House conservatives, of which
Representative Lamborn is pleased to be a member. With over 100 House
Republicans, the RSC is dedicated to a limited and Constitutional role
for the federal government, a strong national defense, the protection of
individual and property rights, and the preservation of traditional
family values.
Prior to Representative Lamborn’s election to the U.S. House, he
served in the Colorado state legislature in the House and Senate from
1995 through 2006. Representative Lamborn received both his bachelor's
degree in journalism and his law degree from the University of Kansas,
where he attended as a National Merit Scholar. He has been an attorney
in private general practice in Colorado Springs for 20 years,
emphasizing business and real estate.
Representative Lamborn is married to Jeanie, his wife of 34 years.
Together they have raised five children, including one daughter and four
sons.</p></span><ul class="UnorderedNewsList"><li style="padding: 7px 0;">
<table id="ctl00_ctl28_DocumentQueryListRepeater_Table1_0" style="border-collapse:collapse;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td align="left" valign="top"><span class="middlecopy">
<span class="middleheadline">
<b>
<a class="middlelinks" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=340985"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Chairman Hastings Joined Fox Business on the Importance of Expanding America’s Offshore</span> Energy Production</a>
</b>
</span>
<br />
<b>
In Case You Missed It<br />Jun 28, 2013
-
</b>
Chairman Hastings Discusses Importance of Expanding American Offshore Energy Production on Fox Business ###
<a class="nounder" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=340985">
More
</a>
</span>
</td><td style="height:75px;width:100px;" valign="top">
<img alt="" src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/images/transpix.gif" height="1" align="left" border="0" hspace="0" vspace="0" width="10" />
<a class="middlelinks" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=340985">
<img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/Thumbnails/7d3a32b6-a25b-56a1-a072-ce1a59337f81.jpg" alt="" align="left" border="0" hspace="0" vspace="0" />
</a>
</td></tr></tbody></table>
</li><li style="padding: 7px 0;">
<table id="ctl00_ctl28_DocumentQueryListRepeater_Table1_1" style="border-collapse:collapse;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td align="left" valign="top">
<span class="middlecopy">
<span class="middleheadline">
<b>
<a class="middlelinks" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=340250">Chairman Hastings Stresses the Importance of Offshore Energy Development with Scott Rasmussen</a>
</b>
</span>
<br />
<b>
In Case You Missed It<br />Jun 24, 2013
-
</b>
Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) joined "What America Thinks" with Scott Rasmussen to discuss the
Offshore Energy and Jobs Act (H.R. 2231) - legislation the House will
consider this week to expand American offshore energy production to
lower energy prices, create over a million jobs, and make ...
<a class="nounder" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=340250">
More
</a>
</span>
</td><td style="height:75px;width:100px;" valign="top">
<img alt="" src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/images/transpix.gif" height="1" align="left" border="0" hspace="0" vspace="0" width="10" />
<a class="middlelinks" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=340250">
<img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/Thumbnails/7afb5b06-c77a-597d-8769-cdabf8a32f5a.jpg" alt="" align="left" border="0" hspace="0" vspace="0" />
</a>
</td></tr></tbody></table>
</li><li style="padding: 7px 0;">
<table id="ctl00_ctl28_DocumentQueryListRepeater_Table1_2" style="border-collapse:collapse;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td align="left" valign="top">
<span class="middlecopy">
<span class="middleheadline">
<b>
<a class="middlelinks" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=335104">ICYMI: Chairman Hastings talk<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">s Keystone on Fox Business </span>News</a>
</b>
</span>
<br />
<b>
In Case You Missed It<br />May 22, 2013
-
</b>
Today, Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings spoke with Melissa Francis on Fox Business to discuss the Keystone XL
Pipeline - a project that is vital to America's energy future. ###
Printable PDF of this document
<a class="nounder" href="http://naturalresources.house.gov/news/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=335104">
More
</a>
</span></td></tr></tbody></table></li></ul><h2>Membership:</h2><p>The <font color="#FF0000">Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources </font>consists of 30 Members, 16 Republicans and 14 Democrats.</p>
<table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="700"><tbody><tr><td style="width: 350px;" align="left" valign="top">
<ul class="memberslist"><li>
<a href="http://lamborn.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/72a7d459-fabf-51ab-9982-e11e8d9f54d0.jpg" alt="Rep. Doug Lamborn" />
<span class="membername">Doug Lamborn</span></a><br />
<span class="membertitle">Chairman</span><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Colorado, 5th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://gohmert.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/9b674e1e-6961-5baa-93ce-bcaa6e56d6b7.jpg" alt="Rep. Louie Gohmert" />
<span class="membername">Louie Gohmert</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Texas, 1st District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://robbishop.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/5fc878ea-e704-58df-8fca-e535cf125a35.jpg" alt="Rep. Rob Bishop" />
<span class="membername">Rob Bishop</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Utah, 1st District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://wittman.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/fd487fd4-e2f7-5418-8fed-750a98f59022.jpg" alt="Rep. Rob Wittman" />
<span class="membername">Rob Wittman</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Virginia, 1st District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://broun.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/fcef8373-758a-549e-9438-6e17804f426d.jpg" alt="Rep. Paul Broun" />
<span class="membername">Paul C. Broun</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Georgia, 10th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://fleming.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/14b9d614-8db6-54a3-9faf-7bfdabd39de3.jpg" alt="Rep. John Fleming" />
<span class="membername">John Fleming</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Louisiana, 4th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://thompson.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/b097c98c-c0d7-544e-959e-54f96461c0c5.jpg" alt="Rep. Glenn 'GT' Thompson" />
<span class="membername">Glenn 'GT' Thompson</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Pennsylvania, 5th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://lummis.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/1a20aee9-2030-52c0-bd5a-fd4a2649218c.jpg" alt="Rep. Cynthia Lummis" />
<span class="membername">Cynthia Lummis</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Wyoming, At-large</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://benishek.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/6a8e4ec7-b6b4-5a02-a4de-8e03bd3cea37.jpg" alt="Rep. Dan Benishek" />
<span class="membername">Dan Benishek</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Michigan, 1st District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://jeffduncan.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/eac73a24-9ac8-5373-8411-09582b90f416.jpg" alt="Rep. Jeff Duncan" />
<span class="membername">Jeff Duncan</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">South Carolina, 3rd District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://gosar.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/1f60d1ae-7166-5b38-be6a-3ff18d3e2aed.jpg" alt="Rep. Paul Gosar" />
<span class="membername">Paul Gosar</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Arizona, 4th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://flores.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/14f91417-4573-55a3-82d0-69db46857fc2.jpg" alt="Rep. Bill Flores" />
<span class="membername">Bill Flores</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Texas, 17th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://amodei.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/2611746d-01d0-5153-96bb-fe126fcf1b5e.jpg" alt="Rep. Mark Amodei" />
<span class="membername">Mark Amodei</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Nevada, 2nd District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://daines.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/13c240cb-d939-5dbf-be9b-0f5a59d52406.jpg" alt="Rep. Steve Daines" />
<span class="membername">Steve Daines</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Montana, At-large</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://cramer.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/bb2c2232-40e3-585b-b743-be040dd736bf.jpg" alt="Rep. Kevin Cramer" />
<span class="membername">Kevin Cramer</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">North Dakota, At-large</span>
</li><li>
<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/8e845b55-72a0-5ba4-afef-3f2c9fd59489.jpg" alt="Vacancy" />
<span class="membername">Vacancy</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict"> </span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://hastings.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/e1b42954-d6dc-5fe5-bb65-298bd79a4fa4.jpg" alt="Chairman Doc Hastings" />
<span class="membername">Doc Hastings</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Washington, 4th District</span><br />
<span class="membertitle"><i>Ex-officio</i></span>
</li></ul>
</td><td style="width: 360px;" align="left" valign="top">
<ul class="memberslist"><li>
<a href="http://holt.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/9bea9c17-3ab0-531f-ab0f-e84ab33557ef.jpg" alt="Rep. Rush Holt" />
<span class="membername">Rush Holt</span></a><br />
<span class="membertitle">Ranking Member</span><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">New Jersey, 12th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://horsford.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/9246be81-93c1-5bd3-b59a-04acf0182ce1.jpg" alt="Rep. Steven Horsford" />
<span class="membername">Steven Horsford</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Nevada, 4th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://cartwright.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/80a76c84-5156-504c-a685-4399d308314e.jpg" alt="Rep. Matthew Cartwright" />
<span class="membername">Matthew Cartwright</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Pennsylvania, 17th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://costa.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/5583b4ab-1ea0-5d90-8747-a26862e611cc.jpg" alt="Rep. Jim Costa" />
<span class="membername">Jim Costa</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">California, 20th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://tsongas.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/f71976f0-124d-565d-8a7d-8e99de1ede5c.jpg" alt="Rep. Niki Tsongas" />
<span class="membername">Niki Tsongas</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Massachusetts, 3rd District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://huffman.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/86257e3f-4d73-5642-8b20-2ecf0a861f88.jpg" alt="Rep. Jared Huffman" />
<span class="membername">Jared Huffman</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">California, 2nd District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://lowenthal.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/ea2ed871-34d0-596f-8d18-65dd6eb6f166.jpg" alt="Rep. Alan Lowenthal" />
<span class="membername">Alan Lowenthal</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">California, 47th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://defazio.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/700daba7-36ed-5ffe-8388-da9d2dc50a6d.jpg" alt="Rep. Peter DeFazio" />
<span class="membername">Peter DeFazio</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Oregon, 4th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://cardenas.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/1bd790e5-991f-541f-a8d7-736e1e2ce85b.jpg" alt="Rep. Tony Cardenas" />
<span class="membername">Tony Cardenas</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">California, 29th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://grijalva.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/153b37b4-afbb-54e8-a5c8-2ee3e2cb12b6.jpg" alt="Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva" />
<span class="membername">Raúl M. Grijalva</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Arizona, 7th District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://hanabusa.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/1415d93a-9143-5588-b540-832cb0e2b46f.jpg" alt="Rep. Colleen Hanabusa" />
<span class="membername">Colleen Hanabusa</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Hawaii, 1st District</span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://garcia.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/b096174d-514a-531b-b069-e265d9554fc2.jpg" alt="Rep. Joe Garcia" />
<span class="membername">Joe Garcia</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Florida, 26th District</span>
</li><li>
<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/8e845b55-72a0-5ba4-afef-3f2c9fd59489.jpg" alt="Vacancy" />
<span class="membername">Vacancy</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict"> </span>
</li><li>
<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/8e845b55-72a0-5ba4-afef-3f2c9fd59489.jpg" alt="Vacancy" />
<span class="membername">Vacancy</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict"> </span>
</li><li>
<a href="http://markey.house.gov/" target="_blank"><img src="http://naturalresources.house.gov/UploadedPhotos/HighResolution/17d2852e-24f7-5e2b-8409-477000715cc7.jpg" alt="Ranking Member Edward J. Markey" />
<span class="membername">Edward J. Markey</span></a><br />
<span class="memberdistrict">Massachusetts, 7th District</span><br />
<span class="membertitle"><i>Ex-officio</i></span>
</li></ul>
</td></tr></tbody></table><h2>Jurisdiction of the Subcommittee:</h2>
<ul><li>All measures and matters concerning the U.S. Geological Survey,
except for the activities and programs of the Water Resources Division
or its successor.</li><li>All measures and matters affecting geothermal resources.</li><li>Conservation of United States uranium supply.</li><li>Mining interests generally, including all matters involving
mining regulation and enforcement, including the reclamation of mined
lands, the environmental effects of mining, and the management of
mineral receipts, mineral land laws and claims, long-range mineral
programs and deep seabed mining.</li><li>Mining schools, experimental stations and long-range mineral programs.</li><li>Mineral resources on public lands.</li><li>Conservation and development of oil and gas resources of the Outer Continental Shelf.</li><li>Petroleum conservation on the public lands and conservation of the radium supply in the United States.</li><li>Measures and matters concerning the transportation of natural
gas from or within Alaska and disposition of oil transported by the
trans-Alaska oil pipeline.</li><li>Rights of way over public lands for underground energy-related transportation.</li><li>Cooperative efforts to encourage, enhance and improve
international programs for the protection of the environment and the
conservation of natural resources otherwise within the jurisdiction of
the Subcommittee.</li><li>General and continuing oversight and investigative authority
over activities, policies and programs within the jurisdiction of the
Subcommittee.</li></ul>===
<h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Committee_on_Energy_and_Natural_Resources.2C_1977.E2.80.93present"><font color="#FF0000">SENATE Committee</font> on Energy and Natural Resources, 1977–present</span></h3>
<ul><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_M.Jackson" title="Henry M. Jackson">Scoop Jackson</a> (D-WA) 1977–1981</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_A.McClure" title="James A. McClure">James McClure</a> (R-ID) 1981–1987</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bennett_Johnston_Jr." title="Bennett Johnston Jr." class="mw-redirect">Bennett Johnston</a> (D-LA) 1987–1995</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Murkowski" title="Frank Murkowski">Frank Murkowski</a> (R-AK) 1995–2001</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Bingaman" title="Jeff Bingaman">Jeff Bingaman</a> (D-NM) 2001</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Murkowski" title="Frank Murkowski">Frank Murkowski</a> (R-AK) 2001</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Bingaman" title="Jeff Bingaman">Jeff Bingaman</a> (D-NM) 2001–2003</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Domenici" title="Pete Domenici">Pete Domenici</a> (R-NM) 2003–2007</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Bingaman" title="Jeff Bingaman">Jeff Bingaman</a> (D-NM) 2007–2013</li><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Wyden" title="Ron Wyden">Ron Wyden</a> (D-OR) 2013–present</li></ul>
===
june 2012
By <em><a href="http://thenewinquiry.com/author/aaronbady/" title="Posts by Aaron Bady" rel="author">Aaron Bady</a></em>
</div>
<p>Maria Gunnoe is a <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">West Virginia </span>coalfield activist, and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfB0pBiJNgs&feature=related">this video</a> isone version of her story. It always makes me tear up; I’ve seen it a
half dozen times, and I just watched it again, and have the sniffles as a
result. Watch it if you have a few minutes. My mother is the founder of
the organization that Maria works with — she makes an appearance in the
video at about minute 3:20 — and this is the part of the country I
grew up in, so I can never tell how much the way it makes me feel comes
from my emotional connection to her story. But I think there’s plenty of
rage-sadness to go around.
Anyway, I want to tell a slightly different story. Yesterday, Maria <a href="http://www.ohvec.org/press_room/press_releases/2012/05_31.html">went to Washington</a>
to testify in front of the <font color="#FF0000">House Committee on Natural Resources (the
subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources)</font>. She delivered <a href="http://ohvec.org/press_room/press_releases/2012/05_31.pdf">these remarks (.pdf)</a>,
describing the kind of devastation that has accompanied the expansion
of mountain-top removal surface mining in southern West Virginia. She
accompanied her remarks with this <a href="http://www.slideshare.net/MGunnoe/truth-from-the-headwaters">slideshow</a>, including this picture of a creek near her home polluted by surface mining:
<a rel="image" href="http://zunguzungu.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/mtrbloodriver.jpeg"><img class=" wp-image-6346 aligncenter" title="mtrbloodriver" src="http://zunguzungu.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/mtrbloodriver.jpeg" alt="" height="263" width="350" /></a>
One way to understand what those photos mean is to think about how
much heavy metal poison is safely buried under mountains, so far below
the water table that it never has the chance to get into our bodies.
There’s a lot of arsenic in the earth’s crust, but until human beings
start digging into on a massive scale, your chance of, say, bathing in
it, or drinking it, are pretty slim. In the coalfields, on the other
hand, this is often what comes out of the faucet:
<img class="aligncenter" src="http://www.marketplace.org/sites/marketplace.org/files/styles/slide-show-2-column-530x396/public/WWW/data/images/repository/2007/12/17/20071217_blueplanet_sink_23.jpg" alt="" height="222" width="297" />
Another way to understand what that kind of water pollution means is
to remember that well water is the only source of water most coalfield
residents have, people who live far from any municipal water supply. In
most of these communities, city water just isn’t an option, and buying
containers of drinking water is expensive. As a result, for so many
people, this is the water they drink, the water they bathe in, the water
they use to live. Human beings require a lot of water, and while you
can distill and filter it, this is still the water you’re stuck with,
the water that comes out of the ground. When that water gets poisoned,
that’s the water you put in your body.
But that’s not the story I wanted to tell either. This is it: Maria
was going to show another picture to the House subcommittee yesterday, <a href="http://www.katiefalkenberg.com/#/the-human-toll--mountaintop-removal-mining/004">this photo</a>,
which is a photo of a five year old child bathing in that kind of
brown, poisonous water. The child is naked, as you normally are when you
bathe. I’d invite you to click that link, and think about what, if
anything, distresses you about it.
The photo was taken by photojournalist Katie Falkenberg, who gave it this caption:</p>
<blockquote><em class="quote open"><img src="http://thenewinquiry.com/wp-content/themes/tni/img/block-quote-left.jpg" alt="" /></em><p>Erica
and Rully Urias must bathe their daughter, Makayla, age 5, in
contaminated water that is the color of tea. Their water has been tested
and contains high levels of arsenic. The family attributes this water
problem primarily to the blasting which they believe has disrupted the
water table and cracked the casing in their well, allowing seepage of
heavy metals into their water, and also to the runoff from the
mountaintop removal sites surrounding their home. The coal company that
mines the land around their home has never admitted to causing this
problem, but they do supply the family with bottled water for drinking
and cooking. Contaminated and colored water in has occurred in other
coalfield communities as well where mountaintop mining is practiced.</p><em class="quote close"><img src="http://thenewinquiry.com/wp-content/themes/tni/img/block-quote-right.jpg" alt="" /></em></blockquote>
<p>Now, that photo of Makayla Urias is a photograph of a naked child, a
child exactly as naked as nine-year-old Kim Phuc was when, forty years
ago, an Associated Press photographer snapped a picture of her, while
she was <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jun/02/girl-vietnam-napalm-photo-peace?newsfeed=true">running and crying from American napalm</a>. You’ve probably seen that photo. It’s iconic. The photographer got a Pulitzer prize for taking it.
Yesterday, on the other hand, Maria was told that she would not be
allowed to show that photo. It was not appropriate<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">. She had the blessing
of the child’s parents, </span>but Republicans on the subcommittee alerted the
capitol police (according to <font color="#FF0000">Spencer Pederson, a spokesman for GOP
panel members),</font> and after the hearing, the capitol police took Maria
aside for questioning about “child pornography.”
Now, this is just what it was, and no more. Coalfield activists like Maria face threats, intimidation, and <a href="http://mountainkeeper.blogspot.com/2012/05/our-first-quarterly-newsletter.html">vandalism</a> regularly; she’s
received verbal threats to her life, her children have been harassed at
school, “wanted” posters of Gunnoe have appeared in local convenience
stores, and so forth. This is a strong lady, and I suspect I’m not wrong
to say that it’s far from the worst of the shit she’s faced for daring
to be strong in a part of the country where Coal is King. It was
just the kind of insulting humiliation that it was meant to be.
Coal-friendly congresspeople were using the resources at their disposal
to harass someone who had the nerve to speak out against the industry
they shill for, to try to intimidate someone like Maria who speaks for
(and is) one of the people that industry poisons.
But it’s pretty clarifying, don’t you think? The real obscenity is
that people drink that water, that they have no choice but to bathe in
it, and to bathe their children in it. You know that, and I know
that. But if a massive surface mining operation in the vicinity of your
house poisons your water table, and if your well water runs brown with
coal sludge and heavy metal particulate, well, that’s just the cost of
doing business in America, a cost that will be paid by the Appalachians
who only live there. It’s regrettable, at best. You can’t call the
police and the state doesn’t want to know. And if you dare to take a
picture of child’s exposure to that poison, if you have the nerve to
walk into the halls of Congress and show them the obscenity that is a
child that must wash herself with poison every day, they will call you a
child pornographer. They will call the police.</p>