HUDSON, Maine — Every year, the Pushaw Lake Ice Fishing Derby is a chance for some winter fun and friendly competition. This year, the derby also provided an opportunity for researchers to gain some valuable information about the lake's fish.
Dianne Kopec, a research fellow at the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine, hit the ice back in February and collected samples of fish caught during the Pushaw Lake derby. Kopec's goal was to test the samples for mercury.
"My concern was so much time had passed since the fish consumption advisory was first announced by the state in 1994," she said. "Folks may think that we no longer have a mercury problem here in [Maine]. Nothing could be further from the truth."
Kopec just wrapped up testing the samples she gathered and shared the results with NEWS CENTER Maine. There were high levels of mercury in the fish samples, which Kopec expected. In general, mercury concentrations were highest in larger, older fish like largemouth bass, white perch, and northern pike.
"Mercury concentrations in the oldest fish were greater than 1,000 parts per billion," Kopec explained. "For context, the mercury action level here in the state of Maine is 200 parts per billion. That's over five times higher than mercury concentration in fish the state considers safe to eat having one meal a week."
Because of mercury being harmful to human health, the state has a fish consumption advisory. Kopec said this advisory has existed since 1994.
The state advises pregnant and nursing women, women who may get pregnant, and children under age 8 to not eat any freshwater fish from Maine's inland waters. The only exception is brook trout and landlocked salmon for one meal per month.
All other adults and children older than 8 can eat two freshwater fish meals per month. For brook trout and landlocked salmon, the limit is one meal per week.
Click here for more information on Maine's fish advisory.
"Mercury, for the most part, in our lakes comes from the air," Kopec told NEWS CENTER Maine. "It’s blown in from areas outside the state. We have to recognize that, protect our health, and do what we can to reduce those mercury emissions."
Kopec added that mercury in Maine's fish not only limits what the general population can eat but also what the state's indigenous peoples can eat.
"The native peoples can't practice a traditional, cultural diet by eating fish," she explained. "Fish used to be a primary source of protein for the Wabanaki peoples, but if they eat a fish meal every day, they would be exposed to very high levels of mercury."