,,ii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #aebh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #ai1 #bjac,ms4 ,collins 7for herself and ,mr4 ,carper7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,environment and ,public ,works ,a ,,bill ,to establish a national mercury monitoring program1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,comprehensive ,national ,mercury ,monitoring ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds that-- 7#a7 mercury is a potent neurotoxin of significant ecological and public health concern2 7#b7 it is estimated that approximately #daj1jjj children born each year in the ,united ,states are exposed to levels of mercury in the womb that are high enough to impair neurological development2 7#c7 the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention have found that #f percent of women in the ,united ,states of childbearing age have blood mercury levels in excess of values determined to be safe by the ,environmental ,protection ,agency2 7#d7 exposure to mercury occurs largely by the consumption of contaminated fish1 but fish and shellfish are important sources of dietary protein1 and a healthy fishing resource is important to the economy of the ,united ,states2 7#e7 in many locations1 the primary route for mercury input to aquatic ecosystems is atmospheric emissions1 transport1 and deposition2 7#f7 existing broad-scale data sets are important but insufficient to track changes in mercury levels in the environment over time1 test model predictions1 and assess the impact of changing mercury emissions and deposition2 and 7#g7 a comprehensive national mercury monitoring network to accurately quantify regional and national changes in atmospheric deposition1 ecosystem contamination1 and bioaccumulation of mercury in fish and wildlife in response to changes in mercury emissions would help policy makers1 scientists1 and the public to better understand the sources1 consequences1 and trends in ,united ,states mercury pollution4 #c4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,administrator ,the term ,administrator means the ,administrator of the ,environmental ,protection ,agency4 7#b7 ,program ,the term program means the national mercury monitoring program established under section #d4 7#c7 ,advisory committee ,the term ,advisory ,committee means the ,mercury ,monitoring ,advisory ,committee established under section #e4 7#d7 ,ancillary measure ,the term ancillary measure means a measure that is used to understand the impact and interpret results of measurements under the program4 7#e7 ,ecoregion ,the term ecoregion means a large area of land and water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities1 including similar land forms1 climate1 ecological processes1 and vegetation4 7#f7 ,mercury export ,the term mercury export means mercury flux from a watershed to the corresponding water body1 or from one water body to another water body 7such as a lake to a river71 generally expressed as mass per unit of time4 7#g7 ,mercury flux ,the term mercury flux means the rate of transfer of mercury between ecosystem components 7such as between water and air71 or between portions of ecosystem components1 expressed in terms of mass per unit of time or mass per unit of area per time4 7#h7 ,surface sediment ,the term surface sediment means sediment in the uppermost #b centimeters of a lakebed or riverbed4 #d4 ,monitoring program 7a7 ,establishment 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,administrator1 in consultation with the ,director of the ,united ,states ,fish and ,wildlife ,service1 the ,director of the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey1 the ,director of the ,national ,park ,service1 the ,administrator of the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration1 and the heads of other appropriate ,federal agencies1 shall establish a national mercury monitoring program4 7#b7 ,purpose ,the purpose of the program is to track-- 7,a7 long-term trends in atmospheric mercury concentrations and deposition2 and 7,b7 mercury levels in watersheds1 surface water1 and fish and wildlife in terrestrial1 freshwater1 coastal1 and marine ecosystems in response to changing mercury emissions over time4 7#c7 ,monitoring sites 7,a7 ,in general ,in carrying out paragraph 7#a71 not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act and in coordination with the ,advisory ,committee1 the ,administrator shall select multiple monitoring sites representing multiple ecoregions and associated coastal waters of the ,united ,states4 7,b7 ,locations ,locations of monitoring sites shall include ,national ,parks1 ,national ,wildlife ,refuges1 ,national ,estuarine ,research ,reserve units1 and sensitive ecological areas in which substantive changes are expected from reductions in domestic mercury emissions4 7,c7 ,colocation ,monitoring sites shall be colocated with sites from other long-term environmental monitoring programs1 where practicable1 including sites associated with the ,national ,ecological ,observatory ,network1 the ,long-,term ,ecological ,research ,network1 and the ,national ,atmospheric ,deposition ,program4 7,d7 ,monitoring protocols ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,administrator1 in coordination with the ,advisory ,committee1 shall establish and publish standardized measurement protocols for the program under this ,act4 7#d7 ,international cooperation ,to the maximum extent practicable1 the program shall be compatible with similar international efforts1 including the ,global ,mercury ,observation ,system and the ,global ,earth ,observation ,system of ,systems4 7#e7 ,data collection and distribution ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,administrator1 in coordination with the ,advisory ,committee1 shall establish a centralized database for existing and newly collected environmental mercury data that can be freely accessed on the ,internet once data assurance and quality standards established by the ,administrator are met4 7b7 ,functions 7#a7 ,in general ,under the program1 the ,administrator1 in consultation with the appropriate ,federal agencies and the ,advisory ,committee1 shall at a minimum carry out monitoring described in paragraphs 7#b7 through 7#d7 at the locations selected under subsection 7a77#c74 7#b7 ,air and ,watersheds ,the program shall monitor long-term changes in mercury levels and important ancillary measures in the air1 including-- 7,a7 the measurement and recording of wet and estimation of dry mercury deposition1 mercury flux1 and mercury export2 7,b7 the measurement and recording of the level of mercury reemitted from aquatic and terrestrial environments into the atmosphere2 and 7,c7 the measurement of sulfur species and ancillary measurements to fully understand the cycling of mercury through the ecosystem4 7#c7 ,water and ,soil ,chemistry ,the program shall monitor long-term changes in mercury and methyl mercury levels and important ancillary measures in the water and soil or sediments1 including-- 7,a7 extraction and analysis of soil and sediment cores2 7,b7 measurement and recording of total mercury and methyl mercury concentration1 and percent methyl mercury in surface sediments2 7,c7 measurement and recording of total mercury and methyl mercury concentration in surface water2 and 7,d7 measurement and recording of total mercury and methyl mercury concentrations throughout the water column and sediments4 7#d7 ,aquatic and ,terrestrial ,organisms ,the program shall monitor long-term changes in mercury and methyl mercury levels and important ancillary measures in marine1 freshwater1 and terrestrial organisms1 including-- 7,a7 measurement and recording of total mercury and methyl mercury concentrations in-- 7i7 invertebrates2 7ii7 yearling or lower trophic level fish2 and 7iii7 commercially1 recreationally1 or conservation relevant fish2 and 7,b7 measurement and recording of total mercury concentrations in-- 7i7 selected insect- and fish-eating birds2 and 7ii7 measurement and recording of total mercury concentrations in selected insect- and fish-eating mammals4 #e4 ,advisory committee 7a7 ,establishment ,the ,administrator1 in consultation with the ,director of the ,united ,states ,fish and ,wildlife ,service1 the ,director of the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey1 the ,director of the ,national ,park ,service1 the ,administrator of the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration1 and the heads of other appropriate ,federal agencies1 shall establish a scientific advisory committee1 to be known as the ,mercury ,monitoring ,advisory ,committee1 to advise the ,administrator and those ,federal agencies on the establishment1 site selection1 measurement1 recording protocols1 and operation of the national mercury monitoring program4 7b7 ,membership ,the ,advisory ,committee shall consist of scientists who are not employees of the ,federal ,government1 including-- 7#a7 #c scientists appointed by the ,administrator2 7#b7 #b scientists appointed by the ,director of the ,united ,states ,fish and ,wildlife ,service2 7#c7 #b scientists appointed by the ,director of the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey2 7#d7 #b scientists appointed by the ,director of the ,national ,park ,service2 and 7#e7 #b scientists appointed by the ,administrator of the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration4 #f4 ,reports and public disclosure 7a7 ,reports ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act and every #b years thereafter1 the ,administrator shall submit to ,congress a report on the program1 including trend data4 7b7 ,assessment ,at least once every #d years1 the report required under subsection 7a7 shall include an assessment of mercury deposition rates that need to be achieved in order to prevent adverse human and ecological effects4 7c7 ,availability of ,data ,the ,administrator shall make all data obtained under this ,act available to the public through a dedicated website and on written request4 #g4 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this ,act-- 7#a7 #cg1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjad2 7#b7 #bi1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjae2 and 7#c7 #bi1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjaf4