[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3569 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3569

    To improve the ability of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
 Administration to respond to releases of subsea oil and gas, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 12, 2010

  Mr. Nelson of Florida introduced the following bill; which was read 
     twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                             Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To improve the ability of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
 Administration to respond to releases of subsea oil and gas, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Subsea Hydrocarbon Imagery and 
Planning Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION 
              OIL SPILL RESPONSE.

    (a) Subsea Hydrocarbon Review.--Not later than 45 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary for Oceans and 
Atmosphere shall conduct a comprehensive review of the current state of 
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the capacity of 
the Administration to monitor, map, and track subsea hydrocarbons.
    (b) Elements.--The review conducted under subsection (a) shall 
include the following:
            (1) A review of protocol for application of dispersants 
        that contemplates the variables of temperature, pressure, and 
        depth of the site of release of hydrocarbons.
            (2) A review of technological capabilities to detect the 
        presence of subsea hydrocarbons at various concentrations and 
        at various depths within a water column resulting from releases 
        of oil and natural gas after a spill.
            (3) A review of technological capabilities for 
        expeditiously identifying the source (known as 
        ``fingerprinting'') of subsea hydrocarbons.
            (4) A review of coastal and ocean current modeling as it 
        relates to predicting the trajectory of oil and natural gas.
            (5) A review of the effect of subsea hydrocarbons (all 
        concentrations including down to hydrocarbon chains in 
        solution) on all levels of the food web, including evaluations 
        of seafood safety, toxicity to individuals, negative impacts to 
        reproduction, bioaccumulation, growth, and such other matters 
        as the Under Secretary considers appropriate.
            (6) Development of recommendations on priorities for 
        improving forecasting of movement of subsea hydrocarbons.
            (7) Development of recommendations for long-term remote 
        monitoring of subsea hydrocarbons after a spill, including 
        dissolved oxygen impacts.
            (8) Development of recommendations for implementation of a 
        Subsea Hydrocarbon Monitoring and Assessment program within the 
        Office of Response and Restoration.
    (c) Program Required.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary shall establish a 
hydrocarbon monitoring and assessment program. Such program shall be 
based on the recommendations developed under the comprehensive review 
required by subsection (a).
    (d) Funding.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, out of any funds in the Oil Spill Liability 
Trust Fund established by section 9509 of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 not otherwise appropriated, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
transfer to the Secretary of Commerce to carry out the provisions of 
this section $15,000,000 to remain available until expended.
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