State wants to keep policing mines’ mercury emissions, but pending EPA regulations leave the effort in question.
By Lisa Mascaro (contact)
Thursday, Sept. 3, 2009 2 a.m.
Steve Marcus
A worker pours molten gold into molds in June at a refinery at Barrick’s Goldstrike mine near Elko. Mercury emissions by the industry — which in Nevada produced gold valued at a record $4.2 billion in 2007 — have alarmed environmentalists and officials.
Washington — As the Environmental Protection Agency moves forward with the nation’s first-ever regulation of mercury emissions from gold mines, the agency’s top administrator vows stricter monitoring of the toxin — which continues to accumulate in streams, air and fish.
Within six weeks the EPA is expected to release its proposed method for controlling the amount of mercury that gold mines in Nevada — the nation’s biggest gold producer — and elsewhere can release into the air.
The pending regulations have thrown Nevada’s own program for controlling mercury emissions into question, as federal authorities determine whether the state’s new methods for limiting gold mining pollution are adequate. Mercury is a potentially brain-damaging neurotoxin that when consumed or breathed can be especially harmful to pregnant women and children.
President Barack Obama has signaled that he intends to reduce mercury emissions, and the administration announced this year its plan to regulate airborne mercury from coal plants and other sites.
EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said this week that mercury “remains a concern for us, whether we’re talking about utility emissions or other sources. So I expect we will continue to be active under that regulatory area.”
In an interview with reporters in Washington, Jackson pointed to a recently released U.S. Geological Survey report that showed mercury contamination was found in every fish sampled from streams nationwide. Some were from areas, including Nevada, affected by gold mining pollution.
Jackson said the report “indicated how ubiquitous and how much of a concern mercury can be. It’s persistent, it’s bioaccumulative and it’s toxic — sort of the big three.”
The federal government’s decision last year to begin regulating gold mines was part of a long-running Clean Air Act lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club and comes as Nevada is trying to assert its own mercury controls.
Nevada’s mines have been among the nation’s worst mercury emitters. One, Jerritt Canyon mine, was shut down by state regulators last year and again this spring when it failed to comply with orders to reduce mercury emissions.
Yet the Nevada Environmental Protection Division and the Nevada Mining Association have opposed the federal regulatory effort, saying Nevada’s program should be given a chance to work. The state sought to intervene in the federal lawsuit, but a judge denied the motion.
The Nevada Mining Association this year suggested that the state should halt its program until the federal regulations are unveiled. The mining companies are concerned they could be forced to make costly improvements to comply with the state program only to be hit with new requirements from the feds.
“It has always been a concern of ours that we’d have conflicting regulations,” said Tim Crowley, president of the Nevada Mining Association. “There’s some guesswork going on.”
That worry has been compounded by a delay in the federal regulation, which was supposed to be put forward in mid-August, but is now scheduled for release on Oct. 15. A public review period will follow.
Jill Lufrano, a spokeswoman for Nevada Environmental Protection Division, said “the failure of EPA to publish the decision in a timely matter does mean that the uncertainty does continue for our program.”
The state’s voluntary emission controls were expanded and made mandatory for all mines in 2005. The Nevada Environmental Protection Division expects, by 2011, to require each mine to install the best available technology to prevent mercury emissions. Some companies have done so.
This summer the state began signing off on the mining operators’ plans of action, issuing permits the mines need to refit their equipment with the latest emission-control technology. “If asked to meet other standards, this would make it very difficult,” Lufrano said.
But those pushing for stricter controls on air emissions say the mining companies in Nevada can do both. Nevada companies produced gold valued at a record $4.2 billion in 2007.
“These guys are dreadful mercury polluters,” said James Pew, the attorney for Earthjustice, which is handling the case for the Sierra Club and others.
“It’s not as though they need a federal regulation to tell them that poisoning the area with vast amounts of mercury is a bad thing,” he said. “If they take strong measures now, that’s just less they’ll have to do when the federal regulation comes out.”
Nevada’s neighbors in Idaho and Utah have long suspected the mercury contamination in their streams and fish is coming from Nevada’s gold mines.
The USGS report released in mid-August showed that one-fourth of the fish surveyed in nearly 300 streams nationwide had mercury levels that exceed the EPA’s protective criteria for those who eat average amounts of fish.
The highest level of mercury in small-mouth bass was found in the Carson River in Dayton, an area with historical gold mining pollution, the report said.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar released a statement with the report, saying “This science sends a clear message that our country must continue to confront pollution, restore our nation’s waterways, and protect the public from potential health dangers.”
Sun Archives
■Starting point or model on mercury? (4-21-2009)
■EPA allegations spark call for checks on state's mines (1-27-2009)
■Heavy price for gold (3-5-2006)
■No new laws seen for mines (3-5-2006)
■Nevada mines release most mercury (6-28-2004)
Beyond the Sun
■Environmental Protection Agency: Mining Waste
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/sep/03/feds-consider-taking-lead-mercury-emissions/
Showing posts with label Mercury. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mercury. Show all posts
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Federal study reveals widespread mercury contamination in fish from air pollution, mining
DINA CAPPIELLO
Associated Press Writer
9:18 PM PDT, August 19, 2009
WASHINGTON (AP) — No fish can escape mercury pollution.
That's the take-home message from a federal study of mercury contamination released Wednesday that tested fish from nearly 300 streams across the country.
The toxic substance was found in every fish sampled, a finding that underscores how widespread mercury pollution has become.
But while all fish had traces of contamination, only about a quarter had mercury levels exceeding what the Environmental Protection Agency says is safe for people eating average amounts of fish.
The study by the U.S. Geological Survey is the most comprehensive look to date at mercury in the nation's streams. From 1998 to 2005, scientists collected and tested more than a thousand fish, including bass, trout and catfish, from 291 streams nationwide.
"This science sends a clear message that our country must continue to confront pollution, restore our nation's waterways, and protect the public from potential health dangers," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a statement.
Mercury consumed by eating fish can damage the nervous system and cause learning disabilities in developing fetuses and young children. The main source of mercury to most of the streams tested, according to the researchers, is emissions from coal-fired power plants. The mercury released from smokestacks here and abroad rains down into waterways, where natural processes convert it into methylmercury — a form that allows the toxin to wind its way up the food chain into fish.
Some of the highest levels in fish were detected in the remote blackwater streams along the coasts of the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida and Louisiana, where bacteria in surrounding forests and wetlands help in the conversion. The second-highest concentration of mercury was detected in largemouth bass from the North Fork of the Edisto River near Fairview Crossroads, S.C.
"Unfortunately, it's the case that almost any fish you test will have mercury now," said Andrew Rypel, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Mississippi who has studied mercury contamination in fish throughout the Southeast. He said other research has shown mercury in fish from isolated areas of Alaska and Canada, and species that live in the deep ocean.
Mercury was also found in high concentrations in western streams that drain areas mined for mercury and gold. The most contaminated sample came from smallmouth bass collected from the Carson River at Dayton, Nev., an area tainted with mercury from gold mining. At 58 other streams, mostly in the West, the acidic conditions created by mining could also be contributing to the mercury levels, the researchers said.
"Some ecosystems are more sensitive than others," said Barbara Scudder, the lead USGS scientist on the study.
All but two states — Alaska and Wyoming — have issued fish-consumption advisories because of mercury contamination. Some of the streams studied already had warnings.
"This is showing that the problem is much more widespread," said Sonya Lunder, a senior analyst for the Environmental Working Group, which has pushed for stronger advisories on consumption of mercury-laden fish and controls on the sources of mercury pollution. "If you are living in an area that doesn't have a mercury advisory, you should use caution."
Earlier this year, the Obama administration said it would begin crafting a new regulations to control mercury emissions from power plants after a federal appeals court threw out plans drafted by the Bush administration and favored by industry. The Bush rule would have allowed power plants to buy and sell pollution credits, instead of requiring each plant to install equipment to reduce mercury pollution.
The EPA also has also proposed a new regulation to clamp down on emissions of mercury from cement plants.
___
On the Net:
U.S. Geological Survey: http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/mercury/
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/wire/sns-ap-us-mercury-contamination,0,6744946.story
Associated Press Writer
9:18 PM PDT, August 19, 2009
WASHINGTON (AP) — No fish can escape mercury pollution.
That's the take-home message from a federal study of mercury contamination released Wednesday that tested fish from nearly 300 streams across the country.
The toxic substance was found in every fish sampled, a finding that underscores how widespread mercury pollution has become.
But while all fish had traces of contamination, only about a quarter had mercury levels exceeding what the Environmental Protection Agency says is safe for people eating average amounts of fish.
The study by the U.S. Geological Survey is the most comprehensive look to date at mercury in the nation's streams. From 1998 to 2005, scientists collected and tested more than a thousand fish, including bass, trout and catfish, from 291 streams nationwide.
"This science sends a clear message that our country must continue to confront pollution, restore our nation's waterways, and protect the public from potential health dangers," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a statement.
Mercury consumed by eating fish can damage the nervous system and cause learning disabilities in developing fetuses and young children. The main source of mercury to most of the streams tested, according to the researchers, is emissions from coal-fired power plants. The mercury released from smokestacks here and abroad rains down into waterways, where natural processes convert it into methylmercury — a form that allows the toxin to wind its way up the food chain into fish.
Some of the highest levels in fish were detected in the remote blackwater streams along the coasts of the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida and Louisiana, where bacteria in surrounding forests and wetlands help in the conversion. The second-highest concentration of mercury was detected in largemouth bass from the North Fork of the Edisto River near Fairview Crossroads, S.C.
"Unfortunately, it's the case that almost any fish you test will have mercury now," said Andrew Rypel, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Mississippi who has studied mercury contamination in fish throughout the Southeast. He said other research has shown mercury in fish from isolated areas of Alaska and Canada, and species that live in the deep ocean.
Mercury was also found in high concentrations in western streams that drain areas mined for mercury and gold. The most contaminated sample came from smallmouth bass collected from the Carson River at Dayton, Nev., an area tainted with mercury from gold mining. At 58 other streams, mostly in the West, the acidic conditions created by mining could also be contributing to the mercury levels, the researchers said.
"Some ecosystems are more sensitive than others," said Barbara Scudder, the lead USGS scientist on the study.
All but two states — Alaska and Wyoming — have issued fish-consumption advisories because of mercury contamination. Some of the streams studied already had warnings.
"This is showing that the problem is much more widespread," said Sonya Lunder, a senior analyst for the Environmental Working Group, which has pushed for stronger advisories on consumption of mercury-laden fish and controls on the sources of mercury pollution. "If you are living in an area that doesn't have a mercury advisory, you should use caution."
Earlier this year, the Obama administration said it would begin crafting a new regulations to control mercury emissions from power plants after a federal appeals court threw out plans drafted by the Bush administration and favored by industry. The Bush rule would have allowed power plants to buy and sell pollution credits, instead of requiring each plant to install equipment to reduce mercury pollution.
The EPA also has also proposed a new regulation to clamp down on emissions of mercury from cement plants.
___
On the Net:
U.S. Geological Survey: http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/mercury/
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/wire/sns-ap-us-mercury-contamination,0,6744946.story
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
State Officials to West Virginians: “Mercury is A-OK!”
Comment: Is the future of the Bannister River and Roanoke/Dan River Basin, uranium mining releases all kinds of nasty minerals, toxins. ETC!! Per
Dr. Gordon EdwardsAs it travels low to the ground (it is much heavier than air) it deposits its "daughters" -- solid radioactive fallout -- on the vegetation, soil and water below; the resulting radioactive materials enter the food chain, ending up in fruits and berries, the flesh of fish and animals, and ultimately, in the bodies of human beings.
Written by Cate Nelson
Published on May 20th, 2009
West Virginians eat less fish than them thar other parts of the country, so it’s just fine that that state’s mercury allowance is almost twice that of the federal level.
Wait…what?!
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP, though the thinking here clearly wasn’t) said that the state standard of 0.5 micrograms per gram of fish tissue is fine as compared to that of the Clean Water Act (0.3 micrograms per gram).
In a puzzling quote with West Virginia Public Broadcasting, a DEP environmental resources analyst, Mike Arcuri, said this on the policy:
The more fish people consume in a given area, the lower that number has to be in order to keep the public safe, if that makes any sense.
If he’s having trouble making sense of his own quote, might his department want to rethink their policy on the neurotoxin?
Get Eat. Drink. Better.
As you probably know, mercury has neurotoxic effects. That’s why we don’t want it in our vaccines! Not to mention our high fructose corn syrup, for those who actually consume the stuff.
Published on May 20th, 2009
West Virginians eat less fish than them thar other parts of the country, so it’s just fine that that state’s mercury allowance is almost twice that of the federal level.
Wait…what?!
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP, though the thinking here clearly wasn’t) said that the state standard of 0.5 micrograms per gram of fish tissue is fine as compared to that of the Clean Water Act (0.3 micrograms per gram).
In a puzzling quote with West Virginia Public Broadcasting, a DEP environmental resources analyst, Mike Arcuri, said this on the policy:
The more fish people consume in a given area, the lower that number has to be in order to keep the public safe, if that makes any sense.
If he’s having trouble making sense of his own quote, might his department want to rethink their policy on the neurotoxin?
Get Eat. Drink. Better.
As you probably know, mercury has neurotoxic effects. That’s why we don’t want it in our vaccines! Not to mention our high fructose corn syrup, for those who actually consume the stuff.
According to the EPA:
The primary health effect of methylmercury is impaired neurological development. Methylmercury exposure in the womb, which can result from a mother’s consumption of fish and shellfish that contain methylmercury, can adversely affect a baby’s growing brain and nervous system. Impacts on cognitive thinking, memory, attention, language, and fine motor and visual spatial skills have been seen in children exposed to methylmercury in the womb.
Or, as Janice Nease, of the Coal River Mountain Watch put it,
The fact that West Virginia is eating a lot less fish; doesn’t that seem to tell him that we are afraid to eat the fish?
Good call. Enviros in WV say that coal mining has a whole lot to do with the amount of mercury in the rivers.
Coal is supposed to stay in the earth. Once you disturb it, there’s all kinds of ugly things that come out of it and we end up consuming. It’s a shame that we can’t take our children and our grandchildren down to the river, teach them how to fish and then also teach them that if you catch that fish what you do is you consume it, you eat it.
But don’t tell the WV coal companies that. There, the roads are shadowed with billboards that declare, “Coal: It Keeps the Lights On!”
It also keeps the residents from living happily near waterways, practicing the time-honored tradition of eating what they catch. And to think, I’ve been pondering a move to my neighbor state, snagging a plot of land next to a river, and working toward self-sufficiency. Hmm…might have to rethink the big plans.
As a side note, the WVPB mentioned that there is already a statewide fish consumption advisory in effect. Tell me again why West Virginians avoid the fish?
Image: kevindooley on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.
http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2009/05/20/state-officials-to-west-virginians-mercury-is-a-ok/
The primary health effect of methylmercury is impaired neurological development. Methylmercury exposure in the womb, which can result from a mother’s consumption of fish and shellfish that contain methylmercury, can adversely affect a baby’s growing brain and nervous system. Impacts on cognitive thinking, memory, attention, language, and fine motor and visual spatial skills have been seen in children exposed to methylmercury in the womb.
Or, as Janice Nease, of the Coal River Mountain Watch put it,
The fact that West Virginia is eating a lot less fish; doesn’t that seem to tell him that we are afraid to eat the fish?
Good call. Enviros in WV say that coal mining has a whole lot to do with the amount of mercury in the rivers.
Coal is supposed to stay in the earth. Once you disturb it, there’s all kinds of ugly things that come out of it and we end up consuming. It’s a shame that we can’t take our children and our grandchildren down to the river, teach them how to fish and then also teach them that if you catch that fish what you do is you consume it, you eat it.
But don’t tell the WV coal companies that. There, the roads are shadowed with billboards that declare, “Coal: It Keeps the Lights On!”
It also keeps the residents from living happily near waterways, practicing the time-honored tradition of eating what they catch. And to think, I’ve been pondering a move to my neighbor state, snagging a plot of land next to a river, and working toward self-sufficiency. Hmm…might have to rethink the big plans.
As a side note, the WVPB mentioned that there is already a statewide fish consumption advisory in effect. Tell me again why West Virginians avoid the fish?
Image: kevindooley on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.
http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2009/05/20/state-officials-to-west-virginians-mercury-is-a-ok/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
