EPA issues mercury warnings for U.S. waters

One out of every four rivers and lakes in the United States is contaminated with mercury and other pollutants that could cause health problems for children and pregnant women who eat too much fish, the Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday.

States issued mercury warnings for more than 750,000 miles of U.S. rivers in 2003, a 65 percent increase over 2002 and the highest alert level reported by EPA. The increase is partly due to states taking a more aggressive role in monitoring for mercury, according to environmental officials.

Mike Leavitt, the administrator of the EPA, said 18 states have issued warnings on eating fish caught from all lakes and rivers.

Another 26 states warn that fish caught in some – but not all – lakes and rivers could be contaminated.

The warnings do not apply to fish caught by commercial fishing fleets that are sold in stores and restaurants.

“This is about trout, not tuna. It’s about what you catch on the shore, not what you buy on the shelf,” said Leavitt. “This is about the health of pregnant mothers and small children. That’s the primary focus of our concern.”

Federal officials advise women and children to eat no more than one meal per week of fish that are caught in mercury-contaminated lakes and rivers.

The statistics on mercury warnings are based on data the EPA collected from states for 2003. The states, not the EPA, are responsible for issuing warnings about fish caught in local streams and lakes.

Adults seldom suffer health problems from eating fish laden with mercury. But a diet rich in mercury-tainted fish can severely damage the nervous systems of children and fetuses. That’s why states issue fish warnings not only to children but also to women young enough to have children.

In Minnesota and Michigan the advisories apply only to lakes and in Indiana only to rivers.

Utah, Wyoming, Iowa, Oklahoma and Alaska issue no mercury warnings for fish caught in their rivers and lakes.

But Leavitt says that even small levels of mercury contaminant can be found in every river, lake and bay in the USA.

“Mercury is everywhere,” Leavitt said. “It’s evident to me that people are eating the fish, and they need to be informed and given perspective.”

Leavitt declined to say when America’s rivers and lakes will be free of mercury contamination. But he did say that it will require cooperation from nations around the world to clean up the mercury contaminating the USA.

Mercury is emitted primarily by incinerators and power plants that burn coal. The EPA has cracked down on mercury from incinerators. It plans to publish rules restricting mercury from power plants by mid-2005.

But environmentalists say the preliminary draft of those rules does not go far enough.