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Regulators set standards for allowable pollution levels in water based on the amount of fish people are thought to eat from those waters. Last year, the EPA said Idaho’s ‘four ounces a week’ standard is too low.
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ulterior epicure/flickr
How much fish do you eat every week? That’s a question Idaho’s Department of Environmental Quality wants to answer. The agency has asked state lawmakers for funding to study that question.
Back in 2006, Idaho DEQ told the Environmental Protection Agency that Idahoans eat four ounces of fish per week. That’s an important number when it comes to setting water quality standards. DEQ Director Curt Fransen puts it this way. “The higher the fish consumption rate, the lower the acceptable toxics in water.”
The EPA regulates 88 toxic substances, including benzene, cyanide, and PCBs. The level of those that are allowed in our surface water is based in part on how much fish we eat. …Go to BoiseStatePublicRadio.org for the complete story.
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EarthFix is a public media project of Oregon Public Broadcasting and Boise State Public Radio, Idaho Public Television, KCTS 9 Seattle, KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio, Northwest Public Radio and Television, Southern Oregon Public Television and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
