[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 642 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 642

  Designating the week of September 15 through September 22, 2018, as 
                      ``National Estuaries Week''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 18, 2018

Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Ms. Collins, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Reed, Mrs. 
     Shaheen, Mr. Carper, Ms. Harris, Mr. Murphy, Ms. Hassan, Mrs. 
Feinstein, Mr. Portman, Mr. Nelson, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Markey, Mr. Booker, 
Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Warner, Mr. Coons, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. 
 Menendez, Mr. Merkley, Mr. King, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Peters, 
and Ms. Baldwin) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Designating the week of September 15 through September 22, 2018, as 
                      ``National Estuaries Week''.

Whereas estuary regions cover only 13 percent of land area in the continental 
        United States but contain nearly 43 percent of the population, 40 
        percent of jobs, and nearly 50 percent of the economic output of the 
        United States;
Whereas the commercial and recreational fishing industries support over 
        1,600,000 jobs in the United States;
Whereas in 2016--

    (1) commercial fish landings in the United States were valued at 
$5,300,000,000;

    (2) 9,600,000 recreational anglers took nearly 63,000,000 saltwater 
fishing trips; and

    (3) consumers in the United States spent $93,200,000,000 on fishery 
products;

Whereas estuaries provide vital habitats for--

    (1) countless species of fish and wildlife, including more than 68 
percent of the commercial fish catch in the United States by value and 80 
percent of the recreational fish catch in the United States by weight; and

    (2) many species that are listed as threatened or endangered species;

Whereas estuaries provide critical ecosystem services that protect human health 
        and public safety, including through water filtration, flood control, 
        shoreline stabilization, erosion prevention, and the protection of 
        coastal communities during hurricanes, storms, and other extreme weather 
        events;
Whereas by the 1980s the United States had already lost more than 50 percent of 
        the wetlands that existed in the original 13 colonies;
Whereas some bays in the United States that were once filled with fish and 
        oysters have become dead zones filled with excess nutrients, chemical 
        waste, and marine debris;
Whereas harmful algal blooms are hurting fish, wildlife, and human health, and 
        are causing serious ecological and economic harm to estuaries along 
        every coast and the Great Lakes;
Whereas changes in sea level can affect estuarine water quality and estuarine 
        habitats;
Whereas the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) 
        (commonly known as the ``Clean Water Act'') authorizes the development 
        of comprehensive conservation and management plans to ensure that the 
        designated uses of estuaries are protected and to restore and maintain--

    (1) the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of estuaries;

    (2) water quality;

    (3) a balanced indigenous population of shellfish, fish, and wildlife; 
and

    (4) recreational activities in estuaries;

Whereas the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) 
        provides that the policy of the United States is to preserve, protect, 
        develop, and, if possible, restore or enhance the resources of the 
        coastal zone of the United States, including estuaries, for current and 
        future generations;
Whereas 27 coastal and Great Lakes States and territories of the United States 
        operate or contain a National Estuary Program or a National Estuarine 
        Research Reserve;
Whereas scientific study leads to a better understanding of the benefits of 
        estuaries to human and ecological communities;
Whereas the Federal Government, State, local, and Tribal governments, national 
        and community organizations, and individuals work together to 
        effectively manage the estuaries of the United States;
Whereas estuary restoration efforts restore natural infrastructure in local 
        communities in a cost-effective manner, helping to create jobs and 
        reestablish the natural functions of estuaries that yield countless 
        benefits; and
Whereas the week of September 15 through September 22, 2018, is recognized as 
        ``National Estuaries Week'' to increase awareness among all people of 
        the United States, including Federal Government and State, local, and 
        Tribal government officials, about the importance of healthy estuaries 
        and the need to protect and restore estuaries: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates the week of September 15 through September 
        22, 2018, as ``National Estuaries Week'';
            (2) supports the goals and ideals of National Estuaries 
        Week;
            (3) acknowledges the importance of estuaries to sustaining 
        employment in the United States and the economic well-being and 
        prosperity of the United States;
            (4) recognizes that persistent threats undermine the health 
        of estuaries;
            (5) applauds the work of national and community 
        organizations and public partners that promote public 
        awareness, understanding, protection, and restoration of 
        estuaries;
            (6) supports the scientific study, preservation, 
        protection, and restoration of estuaries; and
            (7) expresses the intent of the Senate to continue working 
        to understand, protect, and restore the estuaries of the United 
        States.
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