A U. S. consumer health advocate, Erin Brockovich has urged the senators to pass a law to document disease clusters in the country. Her life story was the basis of Academy Award-winning film, "Erin Brockovich” in which Julia Roberts was portrayed as Ms. Brockovich.

She said that thousands of Americans people approach her ever month because they are concerned with the environmental pollution in their community, which is making them ill. People are worried about unknown diseases in their neighborhood and seek for her help.

She has also offered a map of the United States and Canada in which these calls are plotted depending upon their geographical locations. The map shows calls from every U. S. state and several Canadian regions. The map is not based on any scientific methods but is a simple map of people who are reaching out for help.

A disease cluster is an unusual number of health events, such as reports of cancer, grouped together in a time and location. She has urged the senators that the clusters would help in analyzing whether there is a connection between clusters of cancer, birth defects and other diseases, and pollutants in the surrounding environment.