 Radio Script 2001 __________________ Mercury in Pike
STORY: The mercury was found in the livers and muscle of 21 pike taken from tributaries of the lower Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers in western Alaska. Sathy Naidu is a marine scientist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and leader of the study. He says some of the pike tested had levels of mercury higher than what the U.S. Food and Drug Administration considers safe for human consumption. NAIDU: "Some of the numbers we are getting are on the threshold of concern."
The FDA considers levels of methyl mercury in fish higher than one part per million to be a potential danger to human health. While most of the Kuskokwim River pike tested just below this threshold, all six of the pike sampled from the Yukon River had methyl mercury levels between 1.4 and 2.1 parts per million. Naidu says he doesn't know why Yukon River pike had more mercury than pike from the Kuskokwim River. Stephen Jewett, a researcher at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, collected the samples. He says pike probably accumulated mercury directly from the river and from their prey. JEWETT: "Most likely it's from naturally occurring mercury. Mercury is bound up in the form of cinnabar. Cinnabar is quite prevalent throughout the Yukon-Kuskokwim drainage. While there's no mining going on in the lower Yukon for mercury or cinnabar, there are some old mercury mines along the Kuskokwim drainage. So I suspect the mercury is coming from leaching or erosion of sediments along both those rivers."
JEWETT: "There's a good chance that people who rely on salmon to feed themselves and their dogs might take more pike, more freshwater species, when there are dwindling supplies of salmon. There could be a big shift in the consumption of pike." John Middaugh is the chief epidemiologist with the Alaska Division of Public Health. He says that while the study is useful, not enough pike were sampled to draw any firm conclusions. He believes people should continue to eat pike and other fish because, he says, the health benefits far outweigh any possible downside. MIDDAUGH: "Certain species of fish like pike occasionally have levels of methyl mercury that might exceed one part per million, but all of the monitoring data in Alaska show that people's exposure levels have been very low. So at this time, we don't intend to have any specific advisories regarding any specific size or species of fish because the benefits of consumption so outweigh any possible theoretical risks." Scientists also tested grayling and whitefish from the lower Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers, and found no significant levels of mercury in either species. Stephen Jewett, Sathy Naidu, and university colleagues John Kelly, Xioming Zhang and Larry Duffy conducted the study with funding from the North Pacific Marine Research Program. Stephen Jewett says the findings show that more fish from other areas of the state need to be tested. JEWETT: "The only two systems that we looked at for pike were the Yukon and Kuskokwim. I don't have any reason to doubt that you wouldn't see high levels in other systems throughout Alaska." OUTRO: This is Arctic Science Journeys Radio, a production of the Alaska Sea Grant Program and the University of Alaska Fairbanks. I'm Doug Schneider.
Audio version and related Web sites (sidebar at top right) Thanks to the following individuals for help preparing this script:
Dr. Sathy Naidu, professor
Dr. Stephen Jewett, research professor
Xioming Zhang Dr. Larry Duffy, professor
Dr. John P. Middaugh, State Epidemiologist Arctic Science Journeys is a radio service highlighting science, culture, and the environment of the circumpolar north. Produced by the Alaska Sea Grant College Program and the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
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Listen to story on RealAudio Related reading Studies show little risk in eating Alaska fish (PDF file) Related Web sites Mercury and National Fish Advisories Statement (Alaska Division of Public Health) FDA: Mercury in Fish: Cause For Concern? EPA Seafood Information and Resources FDA: Action Levels for Poisonous or Deleterious Substances in Human Food National Listing of Fish and Wildlife Consumption Advisories Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry EPA National Advice on Mercury in Freshwater Fish North Pacific Marine Research Program (NPMR): Mercury study UAF Chemistry and Biochemistry Department UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences What Is
Mercury? Mercury is a toxic metal and a natural element, commonly seen as a shiny, silver-white, odorless liquid metal. Mercury is a persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) pollutant. Why are
we concerned about mercury? What harmful
effects can mercury have on us? How are
we exposed to mercury? |
