Schuette fights EPA mercury regulations

Attorney General Bill Schuette is trying to slow new rules on mercury even as research shows the toxin is present at dangerous levels in sport fish across the state.

Schuette, together with 24 other state attorneys general, asked a federal court this week to delay implementation of new EPA rules that would require power plants to reduce their mercury emissions by 91 percent.

Coal-fired power plants are the major source of mercury emissions. Mercury concentrates in fish and in the animals and people that eat them and can damage the brains of developing children at very low levels.

“Michigan’s fragile economy cannot afford the job losses and skyrocketing electricity rates that would accompany the premature implementation of this new federal regulation,” Schuette told Reuters.

A report by the Great Lakes Commission, released this week, shows that health-damaging levels of mercury are pervasive in Michigan fish.

The Detroit Free Press reports:

Scientists who conducted the largest-ever study of mercury in the Great Lakes said despite a drop in emissions from incinerators, many closed over the past 15 years, the toxin continues to be a persistent problem for wildlife and humans.

The study showed mercury concentrations are higher than recommended for eating certain fish, especially from inland lakes and rivers, despite declines in the toxin pumped into the atmosphere and settling on bodies of water over the past four decades.

The three-year study, released Tuesday by the Great Lakes Commission, said six of the 15 most commonly eaten sport fish in the region had mercury levels higher than recommended for human consumption. They include walleye, lake trout, largemouth bass and northern pike. The level of contamination depends on the species and the place caught.