,i #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #gfba ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,july #af1 #bjbj,mr4 ,cartwright 7for himself and ,mr4 ,rooney of ,florida7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,energy and ,commerce1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,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 #bjj1jjj 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 based on estimates from the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention1 between #bjjj and #bjaj1 between #b and #f percent of women in the ,united ,states of childbearing age have exceeded blood mercury levels 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 protein and micronutrients1 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 mercury 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 of mercury pollution in the ,united ,states4 #c4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,administrator ,the term ,administrator means the ,administrator of the ,environmental ,protection ,agency4 7#b7 ,advisory committee ,the term ,advisory ,committee means the ,mercury ,monitoring ,advisory ,committee established under section #e7;a74 7#c7 ,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#d7 ,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#e7 ,mercury export ,the term mercury export means mercury transport from a watershed to the corresponding body of water1 or from #a body of water to another body of water 7such as from a lake to a river71 generally expressed as-- 7,a7 mass per unit of time2 or 7,b7 mass per unit of watershed or body of water area per unit of time4 7#f7 ,mercury flux ,the term mercury flux means the rate of transfer of mercury between ecosystem components 7such as between water and air or land and air7 or between portions of ecosystem components1 expressed in terms of-- 7,a7 mass per unit of time2 or 7,b7 mass per unit of area of land or water per unit of time4 7#g7 ,program ,the term program means the national mercury monitoring program established under section #d7;a74 7#h7 ,surface sediment ,the term surface sediment means sediment in the uppermost #b centimeters of a lakebed1 riverbed1 estuary1 or coastal area4 #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-- 7i7 units of the ,national ,park ,system2 7ii7 units of the ,national ,wildlife ,refuge ,system2 7iii7 units of the ,national ,estuarine ,research ,reserve ,system2 and 7iv7 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 program4 7#d7 ,international cooperation ,to the maximum extent practicable1 the program shall be compatible with similar international efforts1 including the ,arctic ,monitoring and ,assessment ,programme1 the ,global ,earth ,observation ,system of ,systems1 and the monitoring associated with the effectiveness evaluation of the ,minamata ,convention on ,mercury1 adopted ,october #aj1 #bjac 7,,tias #ag-haf71 which entered into force on ,august #af1 #bjag4 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-- 7,a7 a centralized database for existing and newly collected environmental mercury data that can be freely accessed on the ,internet2 and 7,b7 assurance and quality standards for the database under subparagraph 7,a74 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 program1 in association with the ,national ,atmospheric ,deposition ,program1 shall monitor long-term changes in mercury levels and important ancillary measures in the air1 including-- 7,a7 the measurement and recording of wet mercury deposition2 7,b7 an estimation of-- 7i7 dry mercury deposition 7such as litter mercury deposition72 7ii7 mercury flux2 and 7iii7 mercury export2 and 7,c7 the measurement of mercury isotopes and ancillary measurements to fully understand the transport1 cycling1 and transformations of mercury through ecosystems4 7#c7 ,water and soil chemistry ,the program1 in association with the ,water,watch ,program established by the ,united ,states ,geological ,survey1 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 concentration in surface sediments2 and 7,c7 measurement and recording of total mercury and methyl mercury concentration in surface waters4 7#d7 ,aquatic and terrestrial organisms ,the program1 in association with the ,united ,states ,fish and ,wildlife ,service and the ,inventory and ,monitoring ,division of the ,national ,park ,service1 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 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 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 data on relevant temporal trends and spatial gradients in mercury contamination in the environment4 7b7 ,assessment ,not less frequently than 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 #bjbj2 7#b7 #bi1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjba2 and 7#c7 #bi1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjbb4