U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel appointed a former South Carolina U.S. Rep. John Spratt to mediate a lawsuit challenging the $650 million deepening of the Savannah River shipping channel, The State reports.
During his 28 years in the U.S. House representing South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District, Spratt was chairman of the House Budget Committee and a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
“ The Court regards Mr. Spratt’s prior exemplary service as a member of the leadership of the United States House of Representatives and his understanding of the complex and competing interests in play in this dispute as making him uniquely qualified to serve as the mediator ,” Gergle wrote.
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Dredging Today Staff, August 16, 2012