High Mercury Levels in NC Mountain Fish

A sampling of walleye taken from lakes Fontana & Santeetlah in the western North Carolina mountains last fall were found to have high levels of mercury. This testing was the first of its kind in over two decades, according to Jeff DeBerardinas, environmental specialist with the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). "This was a one time shot to help fill in data gaps in our data base." There are no plans to collect more at this time, because as DeBerardinas says, "we are limited as far as our resources go".

Walleye were the only fish sampled and only from those two lakes. One has to wonder if other lakes in the region, like Glenville, Nantahala, Chatuge and Hiwassee, and other species of fish aren't contaminated as well. It was only at the urging of toxicologists with the state Health Department that got DENR to conduct the testing in the first place.

Mercury enters the food chain at the bottom by attaching to the lake sediments and works its way up through the process of bioaccumulation. The major factor in high levels of mercury found in fish around the world are coal-fired power plants. Even though many politicians and government officials these days are using the term "Clean Coal" it's questionable whether that term is even viable. Perhaps the term is actually an oxymoron as Dan Becker the director of the Sierra Club's Global Warming and Energy Program states.


"I say this based on my experience as the former head of the TVA, which bought and burned more than 30 million tons of coal a year. I was deeply involved in the strip mining, underground mining, trucking, and most importantly, the burning of huge quantities of coal. No one who has been deeply involved with coal can rightfully say it is clean."

—S. David Freeman in "Winning Our Energy Independence: An Energy Insider Shows How"


Originally inspired by the article, "Mercury In Mountain Fish" by Becky Johnson
Smokey Mountain News

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