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<H1>Exhaustive test reveals mercury </H1>
<H1>levels in Bay Area sport fish</H1></DIV>
<P class=byline><A href="mailto:jkay@sfchronicle.com">Jane Kay, Chronicle
Environment Writer</A></P>
<P class=date>Tuesday, November 6, 2007
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<P>The most exhaustive study to date on mercury contamination in Northern
California sport fish has found that some of the most popular species,
including striped bass and carp, have the highest concentrations of the
potent neurotoxin.</P>
<P>Government and private researchers behind the three-year, $4.7 million
study say their findings shouldn't discourage diners from eating fish from
the San Francisco Bay estuary - as long as they limit how much they
consume, learn about the best and worst species to eat and avoid the most
polluted fishing spots.</P>
<P>The study, released today, is part of a campaign to educate the
hundreds of thousands of anglers who each year fish from boats and dozens
of popular sites, including San Francisco's Ferry Building pier, the
Berkeley Marina and the Antioch Harbor.</P>
<P>Mercury contamination can be particularly dangerous for children and
women of childbearing age. In children, too much mercury can cause severe
problems such as retardation and deafness. Even low amounts can delay a
child's ability to walk and talk. It also can cause shorter attention
spans and learning disabilities. In adults, mercury can cause fertility
problems, memory loss, tremors and possibly heart disease, studies
show.</P>
<P>For nearly 200 years, old mining operations, leaking landfills, sewage
treatment effluent and storm runoff from farms and cities have dumped
mercury into the bay. Air pollution from coal-fired power plants thousands
of miles away also contribute to the problem.</P>
<P>Scientists estimate that it could take 50 to 100 years to rid the
estuary of unsafe concentrations of the potent neurotoxin that accumulates
in the fish tissue. The bigger the fish - and the more it eats of other
contaminated creatures lower on the food chain - the higher the mercury
level. </P>
<HR>
<P>The study was financed by the state and federal governments and
conducted by the nonprofit San Francisco Estuary Institute, UC Davis and
three state agencies. The scientists caught 2,000 fish at 70
locations.</P>
<P>Although today's results focus on mercury contamination, the continuing
study also is compiling data on fish contamination from dioxins, PCBs and
other pollutants that accumulate in fatty fish and bottom feeders.</P>
<P>On average, striped bass, spotted bass, largemouth bass, carp, crappie,
channel catfish and white catfish had some of the highest levels of
mercury contamination, the results show.</P>
<P>Lower levels were found in blue gill, chinook salmon, red-ear sunfish
and steelhead trout.</P>
<P>"There are some species that tend to have low concentrations of mercury
throughout the watershed, and people can consume those fish and still
enjoy the health benefits," said Jay Davis, an environmental scientist at
the San Francisco Estuary Institute and lead author of the study.</P>
<P>"It's a matter of knowing which species to target and which locations
have lower concentrations," Davis said.</P>
<P>Tests also indicate that the southern delta is much cleaner than the
San Joaquin River, including fishing spots along the Port of Stockton and
farther south. No fish should be eaten from the Port of Stockton, Davis
said.</P>
<P>The state is using the new data to improve its health advisories that
cover fish caught in local waters, said Bob Brodberg, a senior
toxicologist for the state Office of Environmental Health Hazard
Assessment, a branch of the state Environmental Protection Agency.</P>
<P>The message to people who eat out of the bay, said Brodberg, is "fish
can be very good for your health. But you need to hook into our advisories
to find out what species of fish and how much you can eat at locations
where you fish."</P>
<P>And that goes for both recreational anglers as well as the subsistence
fishermen who rely on local waterways to feed their families, he said.</P>
<P>Fish is an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients
that aid the heart as well as the brain in developing babies and children.
In adults, fish in the diet helps prevent strokes, reduces inflammation,
treats depression and supports good vision, researchers say.</P>
<P>However, consuming fish contaminated with mercury, PCBs or other
chemicals can decrease the health benefits of eating fish, state officials
say. </P>
<P>And it's not only local fish that can have high levels of mercury - an
odorless, tasteless toxicant. Large oceangoing fish such as swordfish,
shark and albacore tuna can contain enough mercury to harm developing
fetuses, young children and, in some cases, adults.</P>
<P>Women who are pregnant or who may become pregnant and children need the
greatest protection from mercury. The scientists involved in the latest
research are trying to spread that message through Women Infants and
Children, a federally financed state nutritional program, and the Food
Stamp Nutrition Education Program.</P>
<HR>
<P>It's hard to know how many people eat fish from the bay. Many just fish
for fun and throw the fish back. Others share them with friends.</P>
<P>According to state Department of Fish and Game, about 300,000 people a
year purchase a $5.50 stamp that allows fishing from boats and banks. The
number doesn't include fishers at piers, who don't need licenses, or those
who don't buy the stamps at all.</P>
<P>Most of the people who fish in the bay are English-speaking. But many
ethnic groups - including Filipinos, Vietnamese, Chinese, Laotians,
Cambodians, Hmong and Russians - also rely on local waters. </P>
<P>State agencies are linking with groups - such as United Cambodian
Families in Stockton and Todos Unidos in Antioch - that help to spread the
message of fish contamination in workshops and other efforts.</P>
<P>Eco-Village Farm Learning Center in Richmond, which teaches organic
gardening and conservation in the East Bay, has posted advisory signs at
about 15 sites around the area, including the Pittsburg Marina, Antioch
Pier, Whiskey Slough in Holt and in the Stockton harbor near the port.</P>
<P>It's difficult to teach people about eating fish safely, said Shyaam
Shabaka, the director of the Eco-Village center. </P>
<P>"Most people don't follow the portion part. They eat fish until it's
all gone," Shabaka said.</P>
<P>Out at the Pittsburg Pier on a recent day, Sam Rokocoko was out
fishing.</P>
<P>"I fish four times a week," said the Fiji immigrant. He picked his job
in Pittsburg so he'd be close to the pier. "I love fishing. I come and see
the water, and sit down and enjoy the view."</P>
<P>Rokocoko follows the advice on the warning signs and says he thinks
many others do, too. But someone has been tearing down the signs that the
groups put up, he said.</P>
<P>And although fishing regulations contain consumption advisories,
counties are not required to post warnings in areas where people fish.</P>
<P>Sacramento, Yolo, Solano, Contra Costa and San Joaquin counties have
posted signs. Others, such as Lake County do not post warnings, Shabaka
said.</P>
<P>In Lake County, Clear Lake is a popular fishing spot, even though it is
polluted with mercury from several mines, including Sulphur Bank mine, a
federal Superfund site.</P>
<P>Raymond Ruminski, director of the Lake County Public Health
Department's environmental health division, said the county doesn't post
fish advisories at the boat ramps, docks or public parks because the issue
has "never came up."</P>
<P>"We rely on people getting the information from the summary handbook
handed out by Fish and Game," he said.</P>
<P>State Department of Public Health officials did not respond to repeated
requests for comment on this article.</P>
<P>A daylong forum on mercury contamination in fish is scheduled for 8:30
a.m. today at the Sierra Health Foundation Conference Center, 1321 Garden
Highway, Sacramento. It is open to the public.</P>
<H3 class=subhead>Online resources</H3>
<H3 class=subhead>Read the report:</H3>
<P><A href="http://www.sfei.org/">www.sfei.org</A></P>
<H3 class=subhead>Look up fish-consumption advisories for waterways in
your area:</H3>
<P><A href="http://links.sfgate.com/ZBLY"
target=_BLANK>links.sfgate.com/ZBLY</A></P>
<H3 class=subhead>For information on contaminants found in ocean
fish:</H3>
<P><A href="http://links.sfgate.com/ZBGN"
target=_BLANK>links.sfgate.com/ZBGN</A></P>
<H3 class=subhead>Calculate your mercury intake from fish you eat:</H3>
<P><A href="http://www.gotmercury.org/">www.gotmercury.org</A></P>
<P></P>
<P></P>
<P>.</P>
<P></P>
<DIV class=infobox>
<H3>Health guidelines </H3>
<P><STRONG>Eating tips: </STRONG>It can be confusing to follow the state
health guidelines when it comes to eating fish that come out of San
Francisco Bay estuary. Here are some tips. <STRONG>A8</STRONG></P>
<P><STRONG></STRONG></P>
<P><STRONG>Seafood choices: </STRONG>For information on choosing seafood
that is both healthy and sustainably caught, go to <EM><A
href="http://www.sfgate.com/green">www.sfgate.com/green</A></EM>.</P>
<P><STRONG>Contamination:</STRONG> For information on contaminants found
in ocean fish, go to <EM><A href="http://links.sfgate.com/ZBGN"
target=_BLANK>links.sfgate.com/ZBGN</A></EM></P>
<P><EM></EM></P></DIV>
<P><I>E-mail Jane Kay at <A
href="mailto:jkay@sfchronicle.com">jkay@sfchronicle.com</A>.</I>
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