Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
to affect the traditional ways at Grassy Narrows. Two com-
munity meetings were held and it was decided that con-
sumption of fi sh should still be discouraged from certain
bodies of water in the area (Kinghorn et al., 2007). For
more than 30 years the residents of Grassy Narrows have
not had access to fi sh with safe levels of mercury and very
little monitoring work has been carried out in the area.
Mercury Mine on Clear Lake. Though mining operations
ceased half a century ago, nearly 2 million cubic yards of
mine wastes and tailings remain in the area. The site is now
listed by the USEPA as a superfund site.
Concentrations of mercury in the soil surrounding Clear
Lake are 100 times greater than background levels, and
local fi sh are highly contaminated (Harnly et al., 1997).
Nearly 20% of fi sh sampled from the lake had mercury
levels exceeding 1.0 µg/g. Many individual fi sh samples
exceeded 0.5 µg/g. While urinary mercury (refl ects expo-
sure to inorganic mercury) levels in tribal members were at
background levels, mean levels of blood mercury (refl ects
fi sh consumption) were about sevenfold higher as com-
pared with non-fi sh consumers (15.6 µg/L vs. 2 µg/L;
Harnley et al., 1997). Furthermore, 20% of the people had
blood mercury levels that exceeded a protective guideline
of 20 µg/L. Consumption of locally caught fi sh (60 g of fi sh
per day) is an important component of this group's culture.
Like other indigenous groups, the presence of mercury in
fi sh has caused cultural distress and negatively affected
nutritional habits.
James Bay Cree of Quebec (Hydroelectric Dam)
For nearly 5000 years the James Bay Cree have resided in
the region of northwest Quebec. In recent years, this area
has become impacted by mercury from several industrial
operations. Between 1961 and 1978, a pulp and paper mill
plant using chlor-alkali cells released mercury into the
Lac Quevillon area. More importantly, the government of
Quebec initiated the development of a massive hydroelec-
tric plant in James Bay in 1971. A series of stations were
built along the La Grande watershed. While there was
much resistance to this development by the James Bay
Cree, their social and environmental concerns were not
immediately addressed.
The newly created reservoirs and associated fl ooding
events promoted the methylation of mercury in sediments
and subsequent biomagnifi cation through the aquatic food
chain. One study reported that concentrations of mercury
in fi sh were fi ve times greater than levels measured before
the development (Brouard et al., 1994). Many fi sh samples
had total mercury concentrations that exceeded 0.5 µg/g.
The concern of mercury's presence in the James Bay region
was quickly realized given the previous experience with the
events in Grassy Narrows, Ontario. In fact, when referring to
mercury the Cree adopted the term
nemasahkosiwin
, which
literally translates to “sick fi sh.”
A surveillance and education program was initiated in
the early 1980s by the Cree Board of Health and Social
Service (Noël et al., 1998). In one survey from 1988, nearly
15% of Cree (2613 individuals) had levels of mercury in
hair exceeding 15 µg/g (Dumont et al., 1998). These levels
were high enough to cause tremors in many individuals,
but associations with other neurologic outcomes were not
as clear (Auger et al., 2005). Owing to education programs,
hair levels have decreased since the 1980s (Dumont et al.,
1998). Though, as levels of mercury remain elevated in the
fi sh (Belinsky et al., 1996), decreased hair mercury levels
are associated with reduced consumption of locally caught
fi sh. These species of fi sh (e.g.., whitefi sh, lake trout, pike),
which were once regularly harvested and consumed by
James Bay Cree, were excellent sources of proteins, miner-
als, vitamins, and fatty acids.
Selected Tribes within the Great Lakes Basin
There are several Native communities located along the
shores of the Great Lakes basin. For centuries these people
have relied on this massive body of water and its abundant
natural resources for their livelihood and traditional life-
styles. Over the past 200 years, the Great Lakes ecosystem
has undergone major developments, particularly in the
areas of agriculture, urbanization, forestry, shipping, and
transportation. More recently, numerous industries have
fl ourished in the Great Lakes basin, including coal-fi red
power plants, which are the single largest source of mer-
cury pollution in the region and are responsible for ensur-
ing that fi sh-consumption advisories remain constant
throughout the basin (Cohen et al., 2004). Given the cul-
tural, economic, spiritual, and/or nutritional importance
of fi sh to Native Peoples, these consumption advisories
have impacted traditional lifestyles in several communi-
ties. Four examples are provided below with additional
details provided by Dellinger et al. (this topic, chapter 14).
The Mohawks of Akwesasne (reservation at the border
of the State of New York and the provinces of Ontario
and Quebec) are a fi shing and agriculturally based tradi-
tional culture of about 10,000-12,000 people. Their 4000-
acre land sits in close proximity to three (two Alcoa and
one General Motors) Superfund sites. Traditionally, the
Mohawks of Akwesasne have depended on fi sh as a cru-
cial supplement to their diets. Expectedly, contamination
from three local Superfund sites and from other atmo-
spheric pollutants in the area has threatened the safety of
those consuming large quantities of fi sh and has presented
the diffi cult task of getting community members to limit
their consumption. Several public health studies involv-
ing their people have been conducted from the 1980s to
Pomo Tribe at Clear Lake (Cinnabar Mine)
The Pomo people are found primarily in Northern
California, a region rich in cinnabar (HgS). Between 1865
and 1957, this mercury ore was mined in the Sulphur Bank
