Hill Heat

Full committee hearing.

Witness:

• Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture

On Wednesday, February 28, 2024, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, will hold a hearing to assist with the development of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2024, which authorizes projects, programs, and other activities under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works program.

Witnesses:

• Michael C. Connor, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works
• Lieutenant General Scott A. Spellmon 55th Chief of Engineers and Commanding General, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chair of Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, will convene a full committee hearing on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at 10:00 AM EST to consider the following presidential nominations:

Nominees:

• Daniel B. Maffei to be Chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission (re-appointment)
• Rebecca F. Dye to be Commissioner of the Federal Maritime Commission (re-appointment)

The purpose of this hearing is to examine the opportunities and challenges associated with developing geologic hydrogen in the United States.

Witnesses:

• Evelyn N. Wang, Director, Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, U.S. Department of Energy
• Dr. Geoffrey S. Ellis, Research Geologist, Energy Resources Program, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Department of the Interior
• Pete Johnson, CEO and Co-Founder, Koloma

Subcommittee hearing.

• Susanne M. Brander, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Oregon State University, College of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences
• Sherri A. “Sam” Mason, Ph.D., Director of Sustainability, Penn State Behrend
• Brent Alspach, P.E., Vice President & Director of Applied Research, Arcadis

As an ecotoxicologist, Susanne M. Brander’s research integrates the responses of aquatic organisms to endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and other environmental stressors, such as microplastics, across the biological hierarchy. He group focuses on discerning mechanisms of toxicity and linking the results of laboratory experiments to ecosystem responses. Current work examines the impact of EDCs on gene expression, development, reproductive behavior, sex ratio and population dynamics across multiple generations, with an emphasis on exposure during early life. Specific compounds of concern include endocrine active pesticides and pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Sherri A. Mason holds a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Montana and is a leading researcher in freshwater plastic pollution. Her award-winning work has drawn international attention to the threats posed by microplastics and led to the passage of national measures banning microbeads. She currently serves as Associate Research Professor and Director of Sustainability at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College.

Brent Alspach is an Associate Vice President with Arcadis and serves as the company’s Director of Applied Research. He is an internationally recognized authority on membrane filtration and desalination processes. He has conducted seawater desalination planning studies and concept design for facilities in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Mexico.

Full committee meeting in executive session on the following nominees:

• Julie A. Su to be Secretary of Labor
• Moshe Z. Marvit to be a Member of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission
• Stephen H. Ravas to be Inspector General, Corporation for National and Community Service

Subcommittee hearing.

Rescheduled to March 12.

Witnesses:

• David Albright, President, Institute for Science and International Security
• Anthony Ruggiero, Senior Director and Senior Fellow, Nonproliferation and Biodefense Program, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
• Theresa Sabonis-Helf, Concentration Chair for Science, Technology, and International Affairs, Georgetown University, School of Foreign Service

On Thursday, February 15, 2024, at 2:00 p.m., in room 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold an oversight hearing titled “Bidenomics & Land Management: The Misguided National Strategy to Develop Environmental Economic Decisions.”

Hearing memo

Witness:

• Henry Wykowski, Advisor, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior

President Biden has pushed the federal government to develop its framework for environmental-economic accounting, laying the groundwork through executive order (E.O.), guidance from his administration, and requests for information.

On April 22, 2022, President Biden issued E.O. 14072—Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies—which ordered the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to issue guidance on the valuation of ecosystem and environmental services and natural assets in Federal regulatory decision-making. On July 22, 2022, OMB issued the guidance in a memorandum for the heads of executive Departments and Agencies regarding research and development priorities for the Fiscal Year 2024 budget (OMB Natural Capital Memo). The OMB Natural Capital Memo instructed agencies to promote efforts to account for ecosystem and natural capital services. The OMB Natural Capital Memo also instructed agencies to “identify and prioritize R&D investments that advance… the ability to evaluate and track the effects of policies, projects, and programs on climate mitigation, resilience, and ecosystem services.”

A month later, on August 22, 2022, OMB continued to execute its marching orders by issuing a request for information to help inform the development of “Government-wide natural capital accounts and standardized environmental-economic statistics” (OMB RFI). The OMB RFI stated that international interest in “developing natural capital accounting methodologies” has led to “demand for U.S. Federal leadership to develop natural capital accounts and standardized environmental-economic statistics to provide a centralized domestic framework and to promote international norms.”

A month later, on October 31, 2022, the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) issued its own request for information—on behalf of the United States Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)—to help “inform the framing, development, and eventual use of the first National Nature Assessment” (USGCRP RFI). The USGCRP RFI stated that the National Nature Assessment “will assess the status, observed trends, and future projections of America’s lands, waters, wildlife, biodiversity and ecosystems and the benefits they provide, including connections to the economy, public health, equity, climate mitigation and adaptation, and national security.” In doing so, the USGCRP RFI declared the U.S. currently “lacks comprehensive knowledge on these major aspects of global change.

On January 19, 2023, the Biden administration released a national strategy for Natural Capital Accounting and ESV, the National Strategy to Develop Statistics for Environmental-Economic Decisions: A U.S. System of Natural Capital Accounting and Environmental Economic Statistics (National Strategy for Natural Capital Accounting).

Open meeting

This month’s commission meeting will be at 1 p.m. at Howard University School of Law, Damon J. Keith Moot Court Room, Houston Hall, Level B 2900 Van Ness Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20008.

Agenda

Among agenda items is the Saguaro Connector Pipeline for the export of natural gas between the United States, in Hudspeth County, Texas, to Chihuahua, Mexico.

Subcommittee hearing on EPA’s NAAQS standards, including the new PM2.5 standard, entitled “Safeguarding Jobs and the Economy: Legislation to End EPA’s Attack on American Manufacturing,” originally titled “Safeguarding American Prosperity and People’s Livelihoods: Legislation to Modernize Air Quality Standards.”

Legislation to be considered:

H.R. ___, the Air Quality Standards Implementation Act of 2024

Witnesses:

• Christopher Netram, Managing Vice President, Policy, National Association of Manufacturers
• John Eunice, Deputy Director, Georgia Environmental Protection Division
• Paul Noe, Vice President of Public Policy, American Forestry and Paper Association
• Seth Johnson, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice