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“TRIBUTE TO DAVID E. ORTMAN FOR 21 YEARS OF SERVICE ON BEHALF OF THE ENVIRONMENT” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E673-E674 on April 16, 1997.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO DAVID E. ORTMAN FOR 21 YEARS OF SERVICE ON BEHALF OF THE
ENVIRONMENT
______
HON. JIM McDERMOTT
of washington
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, April 16, 1997
Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate and pay tribute to one of my constituents, David E. Ortman, who stepped down in February as director of the Northwest Office of Friends of the Earth to become director of the Seattle-based Wise Use Movement. On this first day of Earth Week, it is most appropriate to recognize his career dedicated to the protection, restoration, and rational use of our planet's natural ecosystems and precious resources.
Mr. Ortman began working for Friends of the Earth in 1975 through the Mennonite Voluntary Service program. His endeavors for Friends of the Earth encompassed a broad array of environmental and humanitarian issues. During the late 1970's, he worked with the Alaska Coalition in urging Congress to designate Federal land in Alaska as national parks and wildlife refuges. He participated in the United Nations Habitat Conference in Vancouver B.C., as well as the United Nations Special Session on Disarmament in New York.
In the 1980's David's work on wetlands and coastal issues culminated in the establishment of the Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge in southwestern Washington.
In the 1990's, David organized the Seattle Citizen Host Committee for the 1993 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation conference, working with labor unions, environmental organizations, and human rights groups to develop and publicize new approaches to international trade policy.
Mr. Ortman has testified before congressional committees many times during the past 21 years addressing such diverse matters as trade, forest habitat, wetland and coastal ecosystems protection, oil spill prevention, and the Panama Sea Level Canal. He authored a number of position papers for Coastal Zone Management conferences, served on the Department of the Interior's Outer Continental Shelf Policy Advisory Committee, and on the Aquaculture Assessment panel for the Office of Technology Assessment. In addition, Mr. Ortman is a founding board member of the Puget Sound Alliance and of Earth Share of Washington.
David's work has earned him awards from the Seattle and Black Hills Audubon Societies. The Young Alumnus Award from Bethel College, Kansas, and the national Chervon Conservation Award are among other acknowledgments of his commitment to the environment.
Mr. Ortman plans to continue this work as director of Wise Use Movement. He will lead this organization's campaign to preserve and protect wise use of public lands and resources, to educate the public, and to promote environmentally sound regulation of private lands and activities.
Mr. Speaker, our natural habitat is healthier and the diversity of our ecosystems more sustainable thanks to the work of David E. Ortman, a true world citizen. I thank him for his many years of hard work, and wish him well in his future endeavors.
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