Attalea (plant) important economically. Products extracted from "A. speciosa" were reported to support over 300,000 households in the Brazilian state of Maranhão in 2005, and in 1985 it was estimated to support over 450,000 households throughout the Brazil. Piassava fibres, extracted from the leaf bases of "A. funifera", are commercially important, and generated about US$20 million in annual income to Brazilian farmers in 1996. Attalea (plant) Attalea is a large genus of palms native to Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. This pinnately leaved, nonspiny genus includes both small palms lacking an aboveground stem and large trees. The genus has
Sago Mine disaster Human Services and Education Subcommittee's ranking Democrat, West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd, announced a January 19, 2006, hearing, crediting Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), and Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, for their help in its scheduling. "The families of the Sago miners deserve to know what happened in that mine,” Byrd said. “Just as importantly, miners and their families across this country want to know that steps are being taken to prevent others from ever experiencing such pain." He added, "The investigation at the Upshur County mine will tell us what caused that deadly explosion. But one