1-1                          SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 43
 1-2           WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas takes pride in
 1-3     recognizing The Dow Chemical Company for its role in the magnesium
 1-4     industry and for its Freeport magnesium plant, which has been
 1-5     in operation for 58 years; and
 1-6           WHEREAS, Construction began on the Freeport magnesium
 1-7     plant in 1940, and in response to the expansion of our country's
 1-8     armed forces and the need for lighter weight aircraft during
 1-9     World War II, the plant was built rapidly; the first magnesium
1-10     ingot was poured on January 21, 1941; and
1-11           WHEREAS, The first operations were at the Plant A
1-12     facility, which is still in operation today; the Plant B facility
1-13     was built by Dow for the federal government and was completed
1-14     in 1942; and
1-15           WHEREAS, Over the years, the Freeport plant employed
1-16     tens of thousands of local citizens and produced a quantity of
1-17     magnesium that made enough aluminum cans for every Houston citizen
1-18     to have 60 12-ounce cans of soft drinks a day; and
1-19           WHEREAS, Dow uses seawater as the raw material source
1-20     for its magnesium and treats it with a form of alkalinity to
1-21     create an insoluble precipitant of magnesium hydroxide; a
1-22     less-than-anhydrous magnesium chloride is then generated and is
1-23     used to feed the extensively developed Dow Magnesium Cell; the fact
1-24     that this cell is capable of handling the less-than-anhydrous feed
 2-1     is unique in the industry; and
 2-2           WHEREAS, Dow produces a variety of cast magnesium
 2-3     products, including high purity alloys used in the die casting
 2-4     industry and pure magnesium that is used in metal reduction, steel
 2-5     desulfurization, and aluminum alloying; and
 2-6           WHEREAS, The executives and staff of The Dow Chemical Company
 2-7     consistently strive for excellence in all areas of operation, and
 2-8     they deserve to be  proud of the company's superior achievements
 2-9     in the magnesium business; now, therefore, be it
2-10           RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
2-11     76th Legislature, hereby commend The Dow Chemical Company on
2-12     its many contributions to the magnesium industry and extend
2-13     congratulations on the Freeport magnesium plant's 58-year
2-14     history; and, be it further
2-15           RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
2-16     The Dow Chemical Company as an expression of esteem from the
2-17     Texas Senate.
2-18                                                                   Brown
2-19                                  ______________________________________
2-20                                          President of the Senate
2-21                                       I hereby certify that the above
2-22                                  Resolution was adopted by the Senate
2-23                                  on January 20, 1999.
2-24                                  ______________________________________
2-25                                          Secretary of the Senate
2-26                                  ______________________________________
2-27                                           Member, Texas Senate