BY DANA DUGAN
A student-run study at Community School has proven that mercury levels in fish are rising based on tests performed in 2012 and 2016.
Under the guidance of Community School science teacher Scott Runkel, data from a student-led study in 2012 found that fish caught locally from Little Wood Reservoir, east of Bellevue, had an average mercury level of 0.11 parts per million. Last winter, some of the same students decided to repeat the test from 2012 to see if anything had changed. The average amount of mercury in a group of fish caught in Little Wood Reservoir in February 2016 was 0.15 ppm, indicating a 36 percent increase.
Several of the same students were in the original class with Runkel, in middle school. Together they felt they had a unique opportunity to do the study four years later.
“Throughout this adventure, it was interesting to see how the testing process took place,” said junior Ashley Helm, who took the lead on the project. “Through our research, we found out that mercury, a potent neurotoxin, enters our atmosphere through the burning of fossil fuels and quickly enters the food chain. We concluded that the mercury levels in the trout were rising, but they are still in the safe limit zone as determined” by the State of Idaho.
Mercury is also found naturally in the earth’s crust, and is released from volcanic activity, which could explain its presence in Idaho. But human activity is the main cause of mercury releases, particularly coal-fired power stations, residential coal burning, waste incinerators and mining.
According to the World Health Organization, “exposure to mercury––even small amounts––may cause serious health problems, and is a threat to the development of the child in utero and early in life. Mercury may have toxic effects on the nervous, digestive and immune systems, and on lungs, kidneys, skin and eyes.”
Runkel said one of the outcomes of the full study was seeing how the students became aware that “we as a species can have a really profound effect on the environment without even realizing it.”
In addition, to testing mercury levels in local trout, the Community School high schoolers also conducted a similar analysis with fish for sale in supermarkets and restaurants both years. They found the mercury average for samples of swordfish also rose.
In fact, the swordfish tested was 650 percent greater than is recommended by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, if the fish was caught in Idaho waters. These numbers are in line with mercury testing in swordfish internationally.
As a result of the testing, Helm and Runkel contacted the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare with their findings. They hope to raise more awareness about the importance of testing local waters.
“I hope this new study will encourage the state to do further testing and help spur policymakers to recognize that we need to renew our efforts to make a global switch to renewable energy,” Runkel said. “Even though the U.S. has made changes and cleaned up the coal industry, what China does impacts us. We’re a global community now.”
In addition to Helm, fellow Community School senior Brygitte De La Cruz completed the statistical analysis. California-based SafeCatch ran the tests free of charge.