High levels of mercury taint fish

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Not so many years ago, it wasn’t hard to tell which of our state’s waterways were polluted.

At some times, on some rivers, all it took was a glance at the murky brown water and a brief sniff of the air, and you knew the water wasn’t fit for consumption nor habitation.

Nowadays, things aren’t so simple. Drive by a river or stream, take a hike along the shores of the Atlantic, and you’d swear the water is pristine.

It’s not.

And at a press conference held on the banks of the Penobscot River last week, a number of resource stewards gathered to remind us that the fight for cleaner water is – or should be – ongoing.

The National Wildlife Federation, the Natural Resources Council of Maine, Trout Unlimited and the Penobscot Indian Nation were all represented as the NWF’s latest guide – “Tackling Mercury, A Guide to Safe Fishing in New England – was unveiled.

As you’ve likely already heard, coal-fired power plants upwind of Maine – 1,100 of them, according to Matt Prindiville of the NRCM – provide electricity to some … and toxic mercury to us.

And as you’ve also already heard, eating fish you catch here in Maine is something you may want to think twice about. Especially if you’re pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or a child under 6 years of age.

In all, 45 states have issued advisories warning people about the dangers of eating mercury-contaminated fish. Maine is among them. As Steve Wright of the National Wildlife Federation pointed out, it’s not a bad idea for everyone to be more aware of the problem. And it might be helpful if people let their elected officials know they think reducing pollution ought to be a priority.

“Over the last few weeks, a good friend of mine said that the mercury situation is so bad that the fish don’t want to eat the fish,” said Wright, a lifelong angler.

While many realize women ought to limit their fish intake, fewer probably know that the National Wildlife Federation’s advisory for Maine also mentions a “low-risk group,” and suggests fish consumption limits for them, too.

Guess what: You’re a member of the “low-risk” group. And so am I. All of us are.

According to the report, even those of us who are male, and are older than 6 years old, ought to eat no more than one meal of brook trout a week … two meals of any other freshwater fish a month … and no more than two meals a month of striped bass, bluefish, swordfish and shark.

The problem: Maine can’t control its own destiny. The pollution doesn’t originate here. It just ends up here.

Stiffer laws might help. Then again, they might not. According to Chief Barry Dana of the Penobscot Nation, there are already laws that are being flouted. For Dana, the mere reduction of pollution isn’t good enough. He wants elimination.

“There are [pollution] standards that are created and are not being enforced,” Dana said.

Dana said the Penobscots recognize their role as small parts in the cycle of life. Native people, he said, aspire to always give back to the natural world that provides them sustenance.

That, he said, is a sacred belief.

“The word ‘sacred’ is in our policies as native people,” Dana said. “If the EPA or the DEP were to include the word ‘sacred’ in their policies, then you would not find mercury in the fish, in our fish.”

Instead, Dana said, policies governing pollution are filled with loopholes. Enforcement of those policies is haphazard.

And Maine suffers.

Prindiville said that’s unfortunate, and that action is needed.

“People have been catching fish since there have been people,” Prindiville said. “Fishing is woven into our history and our cultures and is a way of life for many of us. But the problem today is not with catching fish, but with what is in the catch.”

Mercury.

But you already knew that.

What you may not have known is that mercury is only one of the pollutants you need to be aware of … and that you need not catch a fish with a rod and reel to be at risk.

This week thousands of people will gather in Rockland for the Maine Lobster Festival. Thousands of crustaceans will be steamed, thousands of bowls of butter will drip down thousands of smiling faces.

And those lobsters? They may not be quite as safe as you thought, either.

According the NWF’s report, lobster tomalley (otherwise known in many circles as “the yucky green stuff”) shouldn’t be eaten at all.

The NWF’s suggested limit on tomalley meals per month: Zero. The reason: It may contain PCBs and dioxins.

Luckily, I suppose, many of us already avoid the mushy green slime, advisory or no advisory.

But what if the rest of the succulent lobster meat was off limits? Or if we were told we could only enjoy one per month?

Sounds farfetched, doesn’t it?

Then again, Chief Dana’s ancestors probably never thought they’d have to worry about consuming fish they caught in the river that flows by their homes, either.

Food for thought … with no consumption advisory attached.

John Holyoke can be reached at jholyoke@bangordailynews.net or by calling 990-8214 or 1-800-310-8600.