Moorhead To Serve In White House

Hunter H. Moorhead, a native of Greenville, Mississippi, and former agricultural aide to U. S. Senator Thad Cochran, has been named Special Assistant to the President for Agriculture, Trade and Food Assistance. Moorhead, who has been serving as a professional staff member on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, will become the Bush Administration's point person for agricultural and natural resource issues. This position is critical for conservation and forestry as the 2008 Farm Bill is debated. Moorhead, a graduate of Mississippi State University, is stepping into the position formerly held by Charles Conner, who is now Deputy Secretary of Agriculture. Conner represented the Bush administration during the debate on the 2002 Farm Bill. Moorhead follows a long line of talented Cochran staffers who have become key players on conservation issues. Those include: Undersecretary of Agriculture Mark Keenum, Staff Director for the Senate Committee on Agriculture Martha Scott Poindexter and former Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture Hunt Shipman. According to James L. Cummins, executive director of Wildlife Mississippi, “Hunter is one of the brightest minds in Washington when it comes to the conservation and forestry titles of the Farm Bill. We are fortunate to have someone who understands the Farm Bill as well as Mississippi's needs.”

Hunter is the son of Hunter Moorhead of Arcola and Sis (Mrs. Guy) Hovis of Jackson and the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. B.C. Lundy of Leland, and Mrs. Carolyn Henderson of Greenville.

Barbour Names Trudy Fisher To Lead MDEQ

Governor Haley Barbour named Trudy D. Fisher, an experienced attorney in natural resources, energy and environmental law, to lead the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) as executive director. Fisher, who previously served as the MDEQ's general counsel, replaced Executive Director Charles Chisolm, whose retirement was effective January 31, 2007. "Trudy did an outstanding job during her previous service with the Department of Environmental Quality and I know she will provide strong leadership going forward," Governor Barbour said.

Fisher, 46, is the daughter of Yolanda and the late Sam S. Fisher of Vaughan, Mississippi. Fisher is a partner with the Jackson-based Brunini, Grantham, Grower & Hewes firm. She chairs Brunini's Regulatory Department and co-chairs the firm's Environmental Practice Group. Fisher earned a bachelor of science degree from Mississippi University for Women in 1982 and her juris doctor degree from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1985, where she served as editor-in-chief of the Mississippi Law Journal. Fisher has been repeatedly recognized by her peers as one of the Best Lawyers in America, and the Mississippi Business Journal selected her as one of Mississippi's 50 Leading Business Women, in recognition of the environmental legal services she has provided. She is past president of the Mississippi Bar Section on Natural Resources, Energy and Environmental Law, and past president of the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Mississippi. She is also active in other civic and charitable endeavors.

"I look forward to embarking upon this exciting new chapter in my career. I will continue my efforts to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of Mississippians and work to ensure environmentally sound economic development," Fisher said.

Pediatricians Advocate ATV Safety Legislation

As ATV use has increased in Mississippi over the last 20 years, the size and speed of ATVs has also increased. ATVs are today a significant cause of death and injury for children and adults in Mississippi. State Trauma Registries have reported 268 ATV-related trauma injuries from 1999-2002. There were 555 reported ATV accidents, including three deaths, in 2001 in Mississippi and 850 accidents, with four deaths, in 2002. 2004 also saw four deaths, but in 2005 ATV crashes accounted for 10 Mississippi deaths. Concerned about the alarming trend in trauma injuries and deaths related to ATVs, the Southeast Trauma Care Region (SETCR) – one of seven Trauma Regions statewide – decided to analyze ATV-specific data. When SETCR looked at injuries to children age 19 and under for 2005, they found that 100 young people had suffered eye, spinal cord, chest, pulmonary and bone injuries. Five of 18 children with skull fractures died; in addition, 14 with brain injuries had no skull fracture. Every year about 40,000 children are injured on ATVs nationwide. The risk of injury to children is more than twice that of adults. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and the Consumer Federation of America, among others, children under 16 are the most vulnerable to serious ATV-related injury. The American Journal of Epidemiology has reported that children under 16 are five times more likely to be hospitalized from ATV injuries and account for about 40 percent of all ATV-related injuries and 38 percent of deaths nationwide. The AAP has found that 87 percent of children injured in ATV crashes were riding adult-sized ATVs. The Mississippi Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the SETCR, the Mississippi Health Advocacy Program, the Brain Injury Association of Mississippi, the state's trauma nurses and emergency medical technicians, and many law enforcement officials, have joined together this year to ask for ATV safety legislation to require helmets when riding ATVs and to promote better safety education for ATV owners and their families. Injuries on ATVs are more likely when operated at excessive speeds, when driven on pavement or when more than one rider is on the ATV. SETCR has identified eight basic rules for safe ATV use: 1) wear a helmet; 2) use a 4-wheeler that fits the rider's size – big for adults and small for younger riders, including all under 16; 3) drive only when seated, never when standing; 4) one rider per ATV, no passengers; 5) both hands on the handlebar, both feet on the vehicle; 6) do not drive under the influence of alcohol; 7) do not drive an ATV on streets or highways; and 8) do not drive recklessly or with excessive speed. A 2005 study by the American Journal of Public Health found that state ATV regulation and helmet laws lower ATV fatality rates. Mississippi pediatricians have been actively advocating ATV Safety legislation for the past 5 years.

Barbour Appoints Wildlife Commissioners

James B. Huff, Sr., of Taylorsville, was appointed to the 5-year term by Governor Haley Barbour to fill the expiring term of Forest's Noble Lee. Huff, an avid deer and turkey hunter, is retired from government service, having been tapped by former President George Bush to be the Administrator of the Rural Electric Association (REA) in Washington, D.C. While in the capital, Huff also served as district director for Third District Congressman Chip Pickering. Prior to moving to Washington, Huff led the Farmers Home Administration in Jackson. Before entering government service, he was director of operations at Masonite Corporation in Laurel. "I am thankful for the opportunity to be a part of something that is so near and dear to my heart," Huff said of his appointment to the Commission. "Mississippi has such a wealth of natural resources to be enjoyed." Huff, a graduate of Mississippi State University, has been married to Marilyn Graves for 49 years. They have two children and five grandchildren. All live in the Hebron Community in northwestern Jones County.

Jerry Munro, of Ocean Springs, has outdoor experiences that have the state covered. With experience as a saltwater fisherman and an avid hunter, the 41-year-old is a conservation-minded outdoorsman. Munro was appointed by Governor Haley Barbour to the Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. He was sworn in during the November Commission meeting. "Serving on this Commission is an honor and a privilege," said Munro. "I want to make good, sound decisions for hunters, fishermen and the resources in our state." Munro, a 1987 Mississippi State University graduate, is vice-president of the Munro Terminal. He and wife Dee Dee have two children, Grace, 9, and Lilly, 4.