[Pharmwaste] 'Intersex' fish found in Rocky Mountain National Park

[DeBiasi,Deborah]

http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080228/NEWS01/802
280383/1002/CUSTOMERSERVICE02

'Intersex' fish found in RMNP
BY TREVOR HUGHES 
TrevorHughes at coloradoan.com 


Trout found in five lakes in Rocky Mountain National Park have both male
and female sex organs, says a massive new federal report highlighting
the problems that air pollution poses for national parks.

The report released by the Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment
Project said detectable levels of contaminants ranging from mercury to
two banned insecticides and a flame-retardant chemical treatment were
found in eight parks in the western United States, including Rocky.
  
The report said air pollution from coal-burning power plants is a major
source of contamination, which can drift in the atmosphere for long
distances before being dropped in rain or snow. 

"It's certainly a cautionary lesson that supports that what goes up into
our air does come down," said Rocky spokeswoman Kyle Patterson. "Parks
are not immune from human activities from hundreds or even thousands of
miles away."

The report said the pollution could have many different ramifications
and that more study is needed.

"In Rocky Mountain and Glacier national parks, some individual trout
were 'intersex,'" the report said. "This condition is commonly
associated with exposure to certain contaminants (dieldrin and DDT) that
mimic the hormone estrogen."

Dieldrin and DDT have been banned as pesticides in the United States for
at least 20 years. Dieldrin was manufactured for decades at the Rocky
Mountain Arsenal.

The study, which began in 2002, cautioned that because the sample size
of trout from Rocky was relatively small, it's too early to make a
correlation between the hermaphroditic fish and the contaminants found.

Intersex fish, while relatively rare, are more often found in waters
downstream of wastewater treatment plants, living in waters contaminated
with chemicals ranging from birth control pills to antibiotics. The fact
that some were found in relatively pristine alpine lakes at Rocky
suggests the problem may be bigger than believed.

Patterson said seven intersex fish were found in five Rocky lakes: Lone
Pine, Spirit, Haynach, Haiyaha and Dream. Anglers are permitted to keep
fish caught in all but Dream Lake.

She added that it's impossible to tell which fish are intersex without a
microscope.

The report said fish in all eight national parks studied, including
Denali in Alaska, contained mercury at levels above that recommended for
consumption by birds. Some park fish had mercury levels that exceeded
the threshold for human consumption. 



 


Deborah L. DeBiasi
Email:   dldebiasi at deq.virginia.gov
WEB site address:  www.deq.virginia.gov
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Office of Water Permit Programs
Industrial Pretreatment/Toxics Management Program
PPCPs, EDCs, and Microconstituents
Mail:          P.O. Box 1105, Richmond, VA  23218 (NEW!)
Location:  629 E. Main Street, Richmond, VA  23219
PH:         804-698-4028
FAX:      804-698-4032