Eva M. Clayton: “Mr. Chairman, I also want to acknowledge that this is a real issue in my part of the country because indeed those people…”

“Mr. Chairman, I also want to acknowledge that this is a real issue in my part of the country because indeed those people who are affected feel that the system has not worked simply because the bureaucracy has not understood nor taken the time to find all the information based on science. I just feel that they have not been fair in listening to both sides of the issue. I for one stand as a person who believes in the environment, so I do not take shortcuts. I embrace this issue as an issue that we should wait imprudently for economic development. I take as a part of my faith that actually the environment is God's creation and we should do everything to preserve it and certainly, as we move into this area of trying to balance and have clean water, it is equally important that we are fair in that. The tree farmers and those affected, they also honor the land not only because that is where they get their livelihood, but they love the land. To find that they are put in this kind of situation of having to determine that they are not polluters or they are not doing all they want to do to preserve the land is grossly unfair, and it is not based on science.”