[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 374 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 374

  Designating the week of September 19 through September 25, 2021, as 
                      ``National Estuaries Week''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 21, 2021

 Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Markey, Mr. Warner, Mr. Booker, Mr. 
   King, Mr. Coons, Mr. Reed, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Kaine, Mr. 
Blumenthal, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Hirono, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. 
Cardin, Ms. Baldwin, and Mr. Wyden) submitted the following resolution; 
          which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Designating the week of September 19 through September 25, 2021, as 
                      ``National Estuaries Week''.

Whereas estuary regions cover only 13 percent of the land area in the 
        continental United States but contain nearly 43 percent of the 
        population, 40 percent of the jobs, and nearly 50 percent of the 
        economic output of the United States;
Whereas the oceans, estuaries, and Great Lakes of the United States continue to 
        fuel economic growth across the United States, which is evidenced by the 
        fact that, by 2016--

    (1) employment levels in economic sectors relating to oceans and 
estuaries had increased by 14.5 percent from employment levels in those 
sectors in 2007, before the Great Recession; and

    (2) the average employment level of the entire economy of the United 
States had increased by 4.8 percent from that employment level in 2007, 
before the Great Recession;

Whereas, between 2015 and 2016, economic sectors relating to estuaries, oceans, 
        and Great Lakes in the United States--

    (1) created 85,000 new jobs;

    (2) employed 3,300,000 individuals; and

    (3) contributed $124,000,000,000 to the gross domestic product of the 
United States;

Whereas, by 2018, the ocean economy supported 2,300,000 jobs in the United 
        States, and the compensation paid to employees in such sector was 
        $161,900,000,000;
Whereas the commercial and recreational fishing industries support more than 
        1,740,000 jobs in the United States;
Whereas, in 2017--

    (1) commercial and recreational saltwater fishing in the United States 
generated more than $244,000,000,000 in sales and contributed 
$110,700,000,000 to the gross domestic product of the United States;

    (2) angler trip expenditures totaled nearly $10,500,000,000; and

    (3) saltwater recreational fishing supported 487,000 jobs, generated 
$73,800,000,000 in sales across the United States, and contributed 
$41,500,000,000 to the gross domestic product of the United States;

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 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 some estuaries;
Whereas changes in sea levels can affect estuarine water quality and estuarine 
        habitats;
Whereas section 320 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330) 
        (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 29 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 19 through September 25, 2021, 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 19 through September 
        25, 2021, 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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