IIB 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1534 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 14, 2007 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 

Public Works 

AN ACT 

To prohibit certain sales, distributions, and transfers of elemental mercury, to prohibit the export of elemental mercury, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Mercury Export Ban 

3 Act of 2007’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds that— 

6 (1) mercury is highly toxic to humans, eco7 systems, and wildlife; 

8 (2) as many as 10 percent of women in the 

9 United States of childbearing age have mercury in 

10 the blood at a level that could put a baby at risk; 

11 (3) as many as 630,000 children born annually 

12 in the United States are at risk of neurological prob13 lems related to mercury; 

14 (4) the most significant source of mercury expo15 sure to people in the United States is ingestion of 

16 mercury-contaminated fish; 

17 (5) the Environmental Protection Agency re18 ports that, as of 2004— 

19 (A) 44 States have fish advisories covering 

20 over 13,000,000 lake acres and over 750,000 

21 river miles; 

22 (B) in 21 States the freshwater advisories 

23 are statewide; and 

24 (C) in 12 States the coastal advisories are 

25 statewide; 


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1 (6) the long-term solution to mercury pollution 

2 is to minimize global mercury use and releases to 

3 eventually achieve reduced contamination levels in 

4 the environment, rather than reducing fish consump5 tion since uncontaminated fish represents a critical 

6 and healthy source of nutrition worldwide; 

7 (7) mercury pollution is a transboundary pollut8 ant, depositing locally, regionally, and globally, and 

9 affecting water bodies near industrial sources (in10 cluding the Great Lakes) and remote areas (includ11 ing the Arctic Circle); 

12 (8) the free trade of elemental mercury on the 

13 world market, at relatively low prices and in ready 

14 supply, encourages the continued use of elemental 

15 mercury outside of the United States, often involving 

16 highly dispersive activities such as artisinal gold 

17 mining; 

18 (9) the intentional use of mercury is declining 

19 in the United States as a consequence of process 

20 changes to manufactured products (including bat21 teries, paints, switches, and measuring devices), but 

22 those uses remain substantial in the developing 

23 world where releases from the products are ex24 tremely likely due to the limited pollution control 


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1 and waste management infrastructures in those 

2 countries; 

3 (10) the member countries of the European 

4 Union collectively are the largest source of elemental 

5 mercury exports globally; 

6 (11) the European Commission has proposed to 

7 the European Parliament and to the Council of the 

8 European Union a regulation to ban exports of ele9 mental mercury from the European Union by 2011; 

10 (12) the United States is a net exporter of ele11 mental mercury and, according to the United States 

12 Geological Survey, exported 506 metric tons of ele13 mental mercury more than the United States im14 ported during the period of 2000 through 2004; and 

15 (13) banning exports of elemental mercury from 

16 the United States will have a notable effect on the 

17 market availability of elemental mercury and switch18 ing to affordable mercury alternatives in the devel19 oping world. 

20 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON SALE, DISTRIBUTION, OR TRANS21 FER OF ELEMENTAL MERCURY. 

22 Section 6 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 

23 U.S.C. 2605) is amended by adding at the end the fol24 lowing: 

25 ‘‘(f) MERCURY.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION ON SALE, DISTRIBUTION, OR

2 TRANSFER OF ELEMENTAL MERCURY BY FEDERAL

3 AGENCIES.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), 

4 effective beginning on the date of enactment of this 

5 subsection, no Federal agency shall convey, sell, or 

6 distribute to any other Federal agency, any State or 

7 local government agency, or any private individual or 

8 entity any elemental mercury under the control or 

9 jurisdiction of the Federal agency. 

10 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

11 apply to a transfer between Federal agencies of ele12 mental mercury for the sole purpose of facilitating 

13 storage of mercury to carry out this Act.’’. 

14 SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON EXPORT OF ELEMENTAL MER15 CURY. 

16 Section 12 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 

17 U.S.C. 2611) is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘subsection 

19 (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections (b) and (c)’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON EXPORT OF ELEMENTAL MER22 CURY.— 

23 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—Effective January 1, 

24 2010, the export of elemental mercury from the 

25 United States is prohibited. 


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1 ‘‘(2) INAPPLICABILITY OF SUBSECTION (a).— 

2 Subsection (a) shall not apply to this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(3) REPORT TO CONGRESS ON MERCURY COM4 POUNDS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) REPORT.—Not later than one year 

6 after the date of enactment of the Mercury Ex7 port Ban Act of 2007, the Administrator shall 

8 publish and submit to Congress a report on 

9 mercuric chloride, mercurous chloride or cal10 omel, mercuric oxide, and other mercury com11 pounds, if any, that may currently be used in 

12 significant quantities in products or processes. 

13 Such report shall include an analysis of— 

14 ‘‘(i) the sources and amounts of each 

15 of the mercury compounds imported into 

16 the United States or manufactured in the 

17 United States annually; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the purposes for which each of 

19 these compounds are used domestically, the 

20 amount of these compounds currently con21 sumed annually for each purpose, and the 

22 estimated amounts to be consumed for 

23 each purpose in 2010 and beyond; 

24 ‘‘(iii) the sources and amounts of each 

25 mercury compound exported from the 


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1 United States annually in each of the last 

2 three years; 

3 ‘‘(iv) the potential for these com4 pounds to be processed into elemental mer5 cury after export from the United States; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(v) other relevant information that 

8 Congress should consider in determining 

9 whether to extend the export prohibition to 

10 include one or more of these mercury com11 pounds. 

12 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURE.—For the purpose of 

13 preparing the report under this paragraph, the 

14 Administrator may utilize the information gath15 ering authorities of this title, including sections 

16 10 and 11. 

17 ‘‘(4) ESSENTIAL USE EXEMPTION.—(A) Any 

18 person residing in the United States may petition 

19 the Administrator for an exemption from the prohi20 bition in paragraph (1), and the Administrator may 

21 grant by rule, after notice and opportunity for com22 ment, an exemption for a specified use at an identi23 fied foreign facility if the Administrator finds that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) nonmercury alternatives for the speci2 fied use are not available in the country where 

3 the facility is located; 

4 ‘‘(ii) there is no other source of elemental 

5 mercury available from domestic supplies (not 

6 including new mercury mines) in the country 

7 where the elemental mercury will be used; 

8 ‘‘(iii) the country where the elemental mer9 cury will be used certifies its support for the ex10 emption; 

11 ‘‘(iv) the export will be conducted in such 

12 a manner as to ensure the elemental mercury 

13 will be used at the identified facility as de14 scribed in the petition, and not otherwise di15 verted for other uses for any reason; 

16 ‘‘(v) the elemental mercury will be used in 

17 a manner that will protect human health and 

18 the environment, taking into account local, re19 gional, and global human health and environ20 mental impacts; 

21 ‘‘(vi) the elemental mercury will be handled 

22 and managed in a manner that will protect 

23 human health and the environment, taking into 

24 account local, regional, and global human 

25 health and environmental impacts; and 


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1 ‘‘(vii) the export of elemental mercury for 

2 the specified use is consistent with international 

3 obligations of the United States intended to re4 duce global mercury supply, use, and pollution. 

5 ‘‘(B) Each exemption issued by the Adminis6 trator pursuant to this paragraph shall contain such 

7 terms and conditions as are necessary to minimize 

8 the export of elemental mercury and ensure that the 

9 conditions for granting the exemption will be fully 

10 met, and shall contain such other terms and condi11 tions as the Administrator may prescribe. No exemp12 tion granted pursuant to this paragraph shall exceed 

13 three years in duration and no such exemption shall 

14 exceed 10 metric tons of elemental mercury. 

15 ‘‘(C) The Administrator may by order suspend 

16 or cancel an exemption under this paragraph in the 

17 case of a violation described in subparagraph (D). 

18 ‘‘(D) A violation of this subsection or the terms 

19 and conditions of an exemption, or the submission of 

20 false information in connection therewith, shall be 

21 considered a prohibited act under section 15, and 

22 shall be subject to penalties under section 16, in23 junctive relief under section 17, and citizen suits 

24 under section 20. 


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1 ‘‘(5) CONSISTENCY WITH TRADE OBLIGA2 TIONS.—Nothing in this subsection affects, replaces, 

3 or amends prior law relating to the need for consist4 ency with international trade obligations. 

5 ‘‘(6) EXPORT OF COAL.—Nothing in this sub6 section shall be construed to prohibit the export of 

7 coal.’’. 

8 SEC. 5. LONG-TERM STORAGE. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 

10 January 1, 2010, the Secretary of Energy (in this section 

11 referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall accept custody, for 

12 the purpose of long-term management and storage, of ele13 mental mercury generated within the United States and 

14 delivered to a facility of the Department of Energy des15 ignated by the Secretary. 

16 (b) FEES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—After consultation with per18 sons who are likely to deliver elemental mercury to 

19 a designated facility for long-term management and 

20 storage under the program prescribed in subsection 

21 (a), and with other interested persons, the Secretary 

22 shall assess and collect a fee at the time of delivery 

23 for providing such management and storage, based 

24 on the pro rata cost of long-term management and 


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1 storage of elemental mercury delivered to the facil2 ity. The amount of such fees— 

3 (A) shall be made publically available not 

4 later than October 1, 2009; 

5 (B) may be adjusted annually; and 

6 (C) shall be set in an amount sufficient to 

7 cover the costs described in paragraph (2). 

8 (2) COSTS.—The costs referred to in paragraph 

9 (1)(C) are the costs to the Department of Energy of 

10 providing such management and storage, including 

11 facility operation and maintenance, security, moni12 toring, reporting, personnel, administration, inspec13 tions, training, fire suppression, closure, and other 

14 costs required for compliance with applicable law. 

15 Such costs shall not include costs associated with 

16 land acquisition or permitting of a designated facil17 ity under the Solid Waste Disposal Act or other ap18 plicable law. Building design and building construc19 tion costs shall only be included to the extent that 

20 the Secretary finds that the management and stor21 age of elemental mercury accepted under the pro22 gram under this section cannot be accomplished 

23 without construction of a new building or buildings. 

24 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the end 

25 of each Federal fiscal year, the Secretary shall transmit 


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1 to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

2 of Representatives and the Committee on Environment 

3 and Public Works of the Senate a report on all of the 

4 costs incurred in the previous fiscal year associated with 

5 the long-term management and storage of elemental mer6 cury. Such report shall set forth separately the costs asso7 ciated with activities taken under this section. 

8 (d) MANAGEMENT STANDARDS FOR A FACILITY.— 

9 (1) GUIDANCE.—Not later than October 1, 

10 2009, the Secretary, after consultation with the Ad11 ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 

12 and all appropriate State agencies in affected States, 

13 shall make available, including to potential users of 

14 the long-term management and storage program es15 tablished under subsection (a), guidance that estab16 lishes procedures and standards for the receipt, 

17 management, and long-term storage of elemental 

18 mercury at a designated facility or facilities, includ19 ing requirements to ensure appropriate use of flasks 

20 or other suitable shipping containers. Such proce21 dures and standards shall be protective of human 

22 health and the environment and shall ensure that 

23 the elemental mercury is stored in a safe, secure, 

24 and effective manner. In addition to such procedures 

25 and standards, elemental mercury managed and 


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1 stored under this section at a designated facility 

2 shall be subject to the requirements of the Solid 

3 Waste Disposal Act, including the requirements of 

4 subtitle C of that Act, except as provided in sub5 section (g)(2) of this section. A designated facility in 

6 existence on or before January 1, 2010, is author7 ized to operate under interim status pursuant to sec8 tion 3005(e) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act until 

9 a final decision on a permit application is made pur10 suant to section 3005(c) of the Solid Waste Disposal 

11 Act. Not later than January 1, 2012, the Adminis12 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency (or 

13 an authorized State) shall issue a final decision on 

14 the permit application. 

15 (2) TRAINING.—The Secretary shall conduct 

16 operational training and emergency training for all 

17 staff that have responsibilities related to elemental 

18 mercury management, transfer, storage, monitoring, 

19 or response. 

20 (3) EQUIPMENT.—The Secretary shall ensure 

21 that each designated facility has all equipment nec22 essary for routine operations, emergencies, moni23 toring, checking inventory, loading, and storing ele24 mental mercury at the facility. 


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1 (4) FIRE DETECTION AND SUPPRESSION SYS2 TEMS.—The Secretary shall— 

3 (A) ensure the installation of fire detection 

4 systems at each designated facility, including 

5 smoke detectors and heat detectors; and 

6 (B) ensure the installation of a permanent 

7 fire suppression system, unless the Secretary 

8 determines that a permanent fire suppression 

9 system is not necessary to protect human 

10 health and the environment. 

11 (e) INDEMNIFICATION OF PERSONS DELIVERING

12 ELEMENTAL MERCURY.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—(A) Except as provided in 

14 subparagraph (B) and subject to paragraph (2), the 

15 Secretary shall hold harmless, defend, and indemnify 

16 in full any person who delivers elemental mercury to 

17 a designated facility under the program established 

18 under subsection (a) from and against any suit, 

19 claim, demand or action, liability, judgment, cost, or 

20 other fee arising out of any claim for personal injury 

21 or property damage (including death, illness, or loss 

22 of or damage to property or economic loss) that re23 sults from, or is in any manner predicated upon, the 

24 release or threatened release of elemental mercury as 

25 a result of acts or omissions occurring after such 


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1 mercury is delivered to a designated facility de2 scribed in subsection (a). 

3 (B) To the extent that a person described in 

4 subparagraph (A) contributed to any such release or 

5 threatened release, subparagraph (A) shall not 

6 apply. 

7 (2) CONDITIONS.—No indemnification may be 

8 afforded under this subsection unless the person 

9 seeking indemnification— 

10 (A) notifies the Secretary in writing within 

11 30 days after receiving written notice of the 

12 claim for which indemnification is sought; 

13 (B) furnishes to the Secretary copies of 

14 pertinent papers the person receives; 

15 (C) furnishes evidence or proof of any 

16 claim, loss, or damage covered by this sub17 section; and 

18 (D) provides, upon request by the Sec19 retary, access to the records and personnel of 

20 the person for purposes of defending or settling 

21 the claim or action. 

22 (3) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—(A) In any 

23 case in which the Secretary determines that the De24 partment of Energy may be required to make indem25 nification payments to a person under this subVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:40 Nov 15, 2007 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1534.RFS H1534

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1 section for any suit, claim, demand or action, liabil2 ity, judgment, cost, or other fee arising out of any 

3 claim for personal injury or property damage re4 ferred to in paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary may 

5 settle or defend, on behalf of that person, the claim 

6 for personal injury or property damage. 

7 (B) In any case described in subparagraph (A), 

8 if the person to whom the Department of Energy 

9 may be required to make indemnification payments 

10 does not allow the Secretary to settle or defend the 

11 claim, the person may not be afforded indemnifica12 tion with respect to that claim under this subsection. 

13 (f) TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND PROCEDURES.—The 

14 Secretary is authorized to establish such terms, conditions, 

15 and procedures as are necessary to carry out this section. 

16 (g) EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para18 graph (2), nothing in this section changes or affects 

19 any Federal, State, or local law or the obligation of 

20 any person to comply with such law. 

21 (2) EXCEPTION.—(A) Elemental mercury that 

22 the Secretary is storing on a long-term basis shall 

23 not be subject to the storage prohibition of section 

24 3004(j) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 

25 6924(j)). For the purposes of section 3004(j) of the 


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1 Solid Waste Disposal Act, a generator accumulating 

2 elemental mercury destined for a facility designated 

3 by the Secretary under subsection (a) for 90 days or 

4 less shall be deemed to be accumulating the mercury 

5 to facilitate proper treatment, recovery, or disposal. 

6 (B) Elemental mercury that is stored at a facil7 ity with respect to which a permit has been issued 

8 under section 3005(c) of the Solid Waste Disposal 

9 Act (42 U.S.C. 6925(c)) shall not be subject to the 

10 storage prohibition of section 3004(j) of the Solid 

11 Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6924(j)) if— 

12 (i) the Secretary is unable to accept the 

13 mercury at a facility designated by the Sec14 retary under subsection (a) for reasons beyond 

15 the control of the owner or operator of the per16 mitted facility; 

17 (ii) the owner or operator of the permitted 

18 facility certifies in writing to the Secretary that 

19 it will ship the mercury to the designated facil20 ity when the Secretary is able to accept the 

21 mercury; and 

22 (iii) the owner or operator of the permitted 

23 facility certifies in writing to the Secretary that 

24 it will not sell, or otherwise place into com25 merce, the mercury. 


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1 This subparagraph shall not apply to mercury with 

2 respect to which the owner or operator of the per3 mitted facility fails to comply with a certification 

4 provided under clause (ii) or (iii). 

5 (h) STUDY.—Not later than July 1, 2011, the Sec6 retary shall transmit to the Congress the results of a 

7 study, conducted in consultation with the Administrator 

8 of the Environmental Protection Agency, that— 

9 (1) determines the impact of the long-term stor10 age program under this section on mercury recy11 cling; and 

12 (2) includes proposals, if necessary, to mitigate 

13 any negative impact identified under paragraph (1). 

14 SEC. 6. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

15 At least 3 years after the effective date of the prohibi16 tion on export of elemental mercury under section 12(c) 

17 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2611(c)), 

18 as added by section 4 of this Act, but not later than Janu19 ary 1, 2014, the Administrator of the Environmental Pro20 tection Agency shall transmit to the Committee on Energy 

21 and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the 

22 Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Sen23 ate a report on the global supply and trade of elemental 

24 mercury, including but not limited to the amount of ele25 mental mercury traded globally that originates from priVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:40 Nov 15, 2007 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1534.RFS H1534

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1 mary mining, where such primary mining is conducted, 

2 and whether additional primary mining has occurred as 

3 a consequence of this Act. 

Passed the House of Representatives November 13, 

2007. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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