[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 16 (Tuesday, February 10, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E156]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TRIBUTE TO DEPUTY COMMISSIONER R. LEWIS SHAW, SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT 
                  OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JOHN M. SPRATT, JR.

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 10, 2004

  Mr. SPRATT. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor R. Lewis Shaw of South 
Carolina for his service to our state and great contribution to our 
environment. Lewis Shaw is retiring as Deputy Commissioner of the South 
Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), a 
position he has held since 1984. During his long tenure, Lewis Shaw has 
become equated with DHEC and the whole gamut of environmental 
regulation: clean air, clean water, toxic and nuclear waste disposal, 
and waste remediation. He has supervised the state's involvement in all 
aspects of the clean-up of Savannah River Site. His command of the 
issues and professional ability are such that Lewis Shaw has served as 
our state's chief environmental quality officer under both Republican 
and Democratic Governors.
  Lewis Shaw was long ago recognized on the national as well as the 
state level. In 1985, Attorney General Meese appointed him to one of 
four State Environmental Directorships on the National Enforcement 
Council. He served on the Council from 1985-1990, and as Chairman in 
1989. In 1988, Lewis Shaw helped create the Southern Environmental 
Enforcement Network (SEEN,) to facilitate the enforcement of 
environmental statutes, rules and regulations in member states. He 
served as Chairman of Southern Environmental Enforcement Network in 
1991.
  Lewis Shaw was a member of the governing body which founded the 
Southern Appalachian Mountains Initiative (SAMI) in 1994. SAMI is an 
organization of stakeholders formed to explore the environmental 
stability of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and develop long-range 
plans to protect those resources. In 1997, Lewis Shaw was selected to 
serve as Chairman of SAMI. In 1999, he was elected President of the 
Environmental Council of the States (ECOS), the non-partisan 
organization of state environmental commissioners, after serving as 
secretary-treasurer and vice-president. From 2001-2004, Lewis Shaw 
served as President of the Environmental Research Institute of the 
States, ECOS's research arm.
  Out of respect for him and his wide-ranging experience, Lewis Shaw 
has been called to testify before numerous committees of Congress, 
representing the views of South Carolina, and on occasion, all the 
states on environmental issues.
  I have had the good fortune of working with Lewis Shaw on some tough 
issues: on the multiple problems at Savannah River Site, on a toxic 
waste landfill at Pinewood and a hazardous waste incinerator in Rock 
Hill; at Superfund sites in Cherokee and Chester Counties; on ozone 
exceedences in York County and ozone transport, and on clean water 
throughout my district. 1 could always count on Lewis Shaw to 
understand the problem and know the law, and to present solutions that 
were fair and feasible. He has been an asset to South Carolina for 33 
years and to me for the 22 years that I have served in Congress. He 
will be sorely missed and hard to replace, but he leaves a great 
legacy: a much better environment and a model of performance that 
everyone in the field of environmental regulation would do well to 
emulate.




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