Additional federal funding for mine safety
“The entire nation mourned the recent loss of 29 miners at the Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia. As Chairman of the HELP Committee, I am examining possible legislation that would make a number of policy changes in the area of mine safety. But additional Federal appropriations are also needed to help prevent similar disasters, particularly when it comes to reducing the backlog of appeals at the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission,” said Harkin. “Senator Byrd requested this important hearing and I am happy to examine this critical area.”
“I would like to thank Chairman Harkin, a fellow son of a coal miner, for agreeing to hold this very important hearing at my request,” added Byrd. “This is a good beginning to a process that I hope will lead to substantial and long-overdue changes. We must examine the level of resources allocated to our mine regulatory agencies to ensure that, in this day and age, tragedies like the one at Upper Big Branch mine are prevented in the future.”
Witnesses
Panel I- Joseph A. Main, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health, U. S. Department of Labor
- M. Patricia Smith, Solicitor of Labor, U. S. Department of Labor
- John Howard, M.D., Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Mary Lu Jordan, Chairman, Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission
- Don L. Blankenship, Chairman and CEO, Massey Energy Company, Richmond, Virginia
- Cecil Roberts, International President, United Mine Workers of America, Fairfax, Virginia
Climate Science in the Political Arena 2
- Dr. Ralph Cicerone, President of the National Academy of Sciences and Chair of the National Research Council
- Dr. Mario Molina, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and Professor, University of California at San Diego
- Dr. Stephen Schneider, Professor, Stanford University
- Dr. Ben Santer, Research Scientist, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
- Dr. William Happer, Professor, Princeton University
Sizing up the BP Oil Spill: Science and Engineering Measuring Methods
- Steve Wereley, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University
- Richard Camilli, Associate Scientist, Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
- Michael Freilich, Director of the Earth Science Division, NASA
- Frank Muller-Karger, Professor of Biological Oceanography and Remote Sensing, University of South Florida
Federal Response to the Recent Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico
Witnesses
Panel 1- Lisa Jackson, Administrator, United States Environmental Protection Agency
- Ken Salazar Secretary, United States Department of the Interior
- Nancy Helen Sutley, Chair, Council on Environmental Quality
- Rear Admiral Peter V. Neffenger, Deputy National Incident Commander for the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response, United States Coast Guard
- Jo-Ellen Darcy, Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works)
- John R. Fernandez, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development, Economic Development Administration
Response Efforts to the Gulf Coast Oil Spill
- Adm. Thad Allen, commandant, U.S. Coast Guard
- Jane Lubchenco, administrator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Lamar McKay, chairman and president, BP America Inc.
- Steven Newman, president and CEO, Transocean Ltd.
- Deborah French McCay, principal, Applied Science Associates Inc.
Testimony from the Administration on issues related to offshore oil and gas exploration including the accident involving the Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico
- Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Interior
Unified Area Command press briefing
- U.S. Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry
- BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles
- MMS Regional Director of the Gulf of Mexico Region Lars Herbst
The entrance location for press conferences at the Shell Robert Training and Conference Center has changed. Members of the media will enter the facility from the back gate. The address is 23260 Shell Lane in Robert, La., 70455-1928. A Unified Area Command joint information center representative will be at the gate at 12:30 p.m., to escort media.
The call-in number for press unable to attend: (877) 918-5750. International callers use (312) 470-7364 Password – RESPONSE (73776673). Live broadcast may be available on the Digital Video Information Distribution System (DVIDS) hub, which can be accessed at www.dvidshub.net. To see the live broadcast or download video of the conference, media must register with DVIDS no later than 1:45 p.m. This can be done on the DVIDS Web site or by calling (678) 421-6612.
Gulf Coast Catastrophe: Assessing the Nation's Response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Witnesses
Panel 1- The Honorable Janet A. Napolitano, Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
- Rear Admiral Peter V. Neffenger, Deputy National Incident Commander, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
- Lamar McKay, Chairman and President, BP America, Inc.
Briefing on Rainforest Provisions of Climate Legislation
The American Power Act, cosponsored by Senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman, would cap carbon emissions, support clean energy expansion and improve oversight of oil drilling. But it cuts major provisions for the protection of tropical rainforests that reduce emissions and help keep legislation affordable.
Monday at 10:30am EDT, leading experts on climate forest policies will brief journalists by phone on the American Power Act’s tropical forests policies and the significant environmental and cost implications of these changes.
- Douglas Boucher, Ph.D. – Union of Concerned Scientists and Chairman of the Tropical Forest and Climate Coalition
- Mariann Quinn, Director, Environment, Health, and Safety, -Duke Energy
- Greg Fishbein, Managing Director, Forest Carbon Program – The Nature Conservancy
Please call 888-293-6960 and ask for the Climate Forests Fix call. If asked, the passcode is 6624052.
Tropical deforestation is responsible for more carbon dioxide emissions than all the cars, trucks and planes in the world. But protecting forests is one of the most affordable ways of reducing pollution, cutting the costs of legislation by approximately a third or more. It also levels the playing field for U.S. farmers, ranchers, and timber producers by helping stop illegal and unsustainable agriculture practices in tropical countries.
Previous versions of the legislation have set aside five percent of allowances for rainforest conservation and included offset provisions to allow companies to get credit for investing in tropical forest conservation. Restoring these provisions will help accelerate emissions reductions while saving consumers billions of dollars a year on their energy bills.
For more information, contact Glenn Hurowitz at 202-232-3317 and [email protected] or Ben Becker at 202-292-6974 or [email protected]
EPA/NOAA Dispersants Conference Call
There will be a question and answer conference call with subject matter experts to discuss details regarding dispersants.
Speakers- Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, EPA
- Paul Anastas, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Research and Development, EPA
- Dana Tulis, Acting Office Director, Office of Emergency Management, EPA
- Dr. Jane Lubchenco, Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, NOAA
- Dave Westerholm, Director, NOAA Office of Response and Restoration.
The call-in number for this event: (888) 324-7105. International callers use (312) 470-0116 Password – RESPONSE (73776673).