Instructions: In this task, you are given text for US Congressional and California state bills, your task is to generate a summary for this bill.
Input: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ''Mercury Pollution Reduction Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) mercury and mercury compounds are highly toxic to
humans, ecosystems, and wildlife;
(2) as many as 10 percent of women in the United States of
childbearing age have mercury in their bloodstreams at a level
that could pose risks to their unborn babies, and hundreds of
thousands of children born annually in the United States are at
risk of neurological problems relating to mercury exposure in
utero;
(3) the most significant source of mercury exposure to
people in the United States is ingestion of mercury-
contaminated fish;
(4) the long-term solution to mercury pollution is to
minimize global mercury use and releases of mercury to
eventually achieve reduced contamination levels in the
environment, rather than reducing fish consumption, since
uncontaminated fish represents a critical and healthy source of
nutrition for people worldwide;
(5) mercury pollution is a transboundary pollutant that--
(A) is deposited locally, regionally, and globally;
and
(B) affects bodies of water near industrial areas,
such as the Great Lakes, as well as bodies of water in
remote areas, such as the Arctic Circle;
(6) of the approximately 30 plants in the United States
that produce chlorine, only 7 use the obsolete ''mercury cell''
chlor-alkali process, and 4 have not yet committed to phasing
out mercury use;
(7)(A) less than 5 percent of the total quantity of
chlorine and caustic soda produced in the United States comes
from the chlor-alkali plants described in paragraph (6) that
use the mercury cell chlor-alkali process;
(B) cost-effective alternatives are available and in use in
the remaining 95 percent of chlorine and caustic soda
production; and
(C) other countries, including Japan, have already banned
the mercury cell chlor-alkali process;
(8) the chlor-alkali industry acknowledges that--
(A) mercury can contaminate products manufactured
at mercury cell facilities; and
(B) the use of some of those products results in
the direct and indirect release of mercury;
(9) despite those quantities of mercury known to have been
used or to be in use, neither the chlor-alkali industry nor the
Environmental Protection Agency is able--
(A) to adequately account for the disposition of
the mercury used at those facilities; or
(B) to accurately estimate current mercury
emissions; and
(10) it is critically important that the United States work
aggressively toward the minimization of supply, demand, and
releases of mercury, both domestically and internationally.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

Congress declares that the United States should develop policies
and programs that will--
(1) reduce mercury use and emissions within the United
States;
(2) reduce mercury releases from the reservoir of mercury
currently in use or circulation within the United States; and
(3) reduce exposures to mercury, particularly exposures of
women of childbearing age and young children.

SEC. 4. USE OF MERCURY IN CHLORINE AND CAUSTIC SODA MANUFACTURING.

(a) In General.--Title I of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15
U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 6 the
following:

''SEC. 6A. USE OF MERCURY IN CHLORINE AND CAUSTIC SODA MANUFACTURING.

''(a) Definition of Chlor-alkali Facility.--In this section, the
term 'chlor-alkali facility' means a facility used for the manufacture
of chlorine or caustic soda using a mercury cell process.
''(b) Prohibition.--
''(1) In general.--Except as otherwise provided in this
subsection, it shall be unlawful to manufacture chlorine or
caustic soda using mercury cells at any facility in the United
States.
''(2) Notice.--The owner or operator of any existing chlor-
alkali facility shall notify the Administrator no later than
June 30, 2012, whether it will--
''(A) replace its chlor-alkali facility with a new
manufacturing facility that does not use mercury; or
''(B) cease operations.
''(3) Closure.--A chlor-alkali facility for which a closure
notice is filed under paragraph (2)(B) shall cease
manufacturing chlorine or caustic soda using mercury cells no
later than June 30, 2013.
''(4) Replacement.--A chlor-alkali facility for which a
replacement notice is filed under paragraph (2)(A) may continue
to manufacture chlorine or caustic soda using mercury cells
until all of the permitting, financing, engineering, and
construction of a non-mercury replacement facility is complete,
or June 30, 2015, whichever is earlier.
''(c) Export Ban.--Effective on the date of the enactment of this
section, the export of any elemental mercury or the sale of elemental
mercury for purposes of export, including compounds and mixtures
containing elemental mercury, by the owner or operator of a chlor-
alkali facility is prohibited.
''(d) Savings Provision.--Nothing in this section affects the
ability of the owner or operator of any chlor-alkali facility to store
elemental mercury in accordance with section 5(g)(2) of the Mercury
Export Ban Act of 2008 (42 U.S.C. 6939f).''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) The table of contents of the Toxic
Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2601 note) is amended by inserting
after the item relating to section 6 the following:

''Sec. 6A. Use of mercury in chlorine and caustic soda
manufacturing.''.
(2) Paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 15 of such Act are each
amended by striking ''or 6'' and inserting '', 6 or 6A''.
Output:
Mercury Pollution Reduction Act - Declares that the United States should develop policies and programs that will reduce: (1) mercury use and emissions; (2) mercury releases from the reservoir of mercury currently in use or circulation; and (3) exposures to mercury, particularly of women of childbearing age and young children.

Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act to prohibit: (1) the manufacture of chlorine or caustic soda using mercury cells at any facility in the United States; and (2) the export of any elemental mercury or the sale of elemental mercury for purposes of export, including compounds and mixtures containing elemental mercury, by the owner or operator of a chlor-alkali facility.

Requires the owner or operator of any existing chlor-alkali facility to notify the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) no later than June 30, 2012, on whether the owner or operator will replace its chlor-alkali facility with a new manufacturing facility that does not use mercury or cease operations. Requires a chlor-alkali facility for which a closure notice is filed to cease manufacturing chlorine or caustic soda using mercury cells no later than June 30, 2013. Authorizes a chlor-alkali facility for which a replacement notice is filed to continue to manufacture chlorine or caustic soda using mercury cells until all of the permitting, financing, engineering, and construction of a non-mercury replacement facility is complete or June 30, 2015, whichever is earlier.

Provides that this Act does not affect the ability of the owner or operator of any chlor-alkali facility to store elemental mercury in accordance with the Mercury Export Ban Act of 2008.