New fish mercury level information from Hydro Quebec confirms fish consumption precautions

August 13, 2010 by Amy German

Reggie Tomatuk talks about mercury findings with Luke Macleod on Cree Health Radio Show.

Devoted to the health and safety of the Cree in Eeyou Istchee, Cree Public Health is responding quickly with new information made available through Hydro Quebec on the quality of fish in the area.

According to Laura Atikessé, an environmental health officer for CBHSSJB’s Public Health Department, there has been a significant rise in the mercury levels of fish found in Eeyou Istchee’s in both the Eastmain 1 and Opinaca reservoirs and their immediate downstream that Crees need to know about.

Atikessé said that Public Health had recently been informed by Hydro Quebec that fish from the Eastmain and Opinaca reservoirs have shown significantly higher quantities of mercury within their flesh. The results were similar for fish from waters two to three kilometers downstream, below La Sarcelle but the contamination warning does not extend further than those areas. There is no anticipation of an increase of mercury within the fish found in the Lake Boyd, Sakami and the LG 2 Reservoir however.  

“The mercury has increased in all of the fish but the mercury levels are higher in fish that eat other fish – pike, walleye and lake trout” said Atikessé.

Mercury in large quantities is toxic to humans, particularly to developing babies still in the womb. It is important for those who fish in these areas to know that certain species of fish should be avoided at this time. Those species include pike, walleye, lake trout and bottom feeder burbot.

At the same time, Atikessé said that there is no cause for panic as there are still many varieties of fish that are still quite safe for human consumption. These include ciscoes, lake white fish, sturgeon and speckled trout - non-predatory fish that consume only insects or plants.
 
There are significantly lower levels of mercury found in these non-predatory varieties of fish which make them ideal for human consumption. Cree Health recommends that two or more servings of these fish be eaten on a weekly basis. One serving per month of the higher mercury fish can be permitted though it would be ideal to go for smaller fish as they contain significantly less mercury than a much larger fish.
 
These recommendations are particularly significant for pregnant or nursing women.
 
The CBHSSJB receives new information from Hydro Quebec on mercury levels in fish in Eeyou Istchee on a regular basis.  The energy giant is required to measure mercury in fish through a certificate of authorization for the Eastmain 1A-Rupert development project from the Quebec Ministry of the Environment.

According to Atikessé, Hydro Quebec samples fish in areas affected by their developments and reports back to populations that could be potentially affected by the projects or other factors. In addition to the projects, there is a certain baseline natural mercury level in fish and this baseline is also higher in predatory fish.  On top of that, mercury is also emitted from the smokestacks of numerous industries, including coal-based electricity generating plants in Ontario and and the United States. This smoke may be blown to northern regions by prevailing winds and fall onto the lands and water bodies in rain.   

“For this year, because the levels have increased in some areas, the guidelines have changed and this is why we need to inform the population that the levels have changed,” said Atikessé.

For example, in the Opinaca reservoir, the mercury levels for pike in 2004 were 1.65 parts per million (ppm) which is recommended for occasional consumption only. But, in 2009 the levels went up to 2.01 ppm which now has the fish marked under the 'consumption not recommended' category.

In the fall Public Health will be teaming up with Hydro Quebec and the Monitoring Committee to see if the information tools such as the pamphlets and maps that are made available to the Cree public, are effective and useful.

Though in this instance Hydro Quebec is at the heart of the issue, Public Health also regularly consults with other entities and government departments such as Health Canada, the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Parks or other public health departments in other regions.

“It is a big collaboration with all of the other health and social services with Quebec and even Canada if we need to get more information,” said Atikessé.

While Atikessé acknowledges that this new information may be a little hard to swallow, she said that there is hope yet as these numbers will probably not be permanent. For example, non-predatory fish from the La Grande Complex reservoir have mercury levels that are back to normal because the impoundment began almost 30 years ago and the ecosystem has had the time to repair itself. She said that over time the same could happen for the Eastmain and Opinaca reservoirs.  

Related information:

Fish Facts (revised August 2010) (PDF)