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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Heres a topic I barrowed from another board along with my answer to it. It was kinda thought provoking to me, so I thought I'd post it for your review and comment.
Hi all,
Just wondering the quality of fish for human consumption from Poratge Lake in Washtenaw Cty. I am just getting back to fishing and read the long report from the DEQ and the mercury advisory for michigan inland lakes, but wanted some opinions from people who have, or have not, eaten the fish in the lake. Basically I have not fished for about 10 years and want to know if you guys/gals are eating the fish from the lakes these days or just throwing them back.
Thanks
My answer.
First off, everything you eat in today's world kills you in some round about way. But I've noticed as the DEQ's and EPA's technology to distinguish parts per Million progressed to parts per Trillion, that their warnings along with their public law suits have progressed as well. These agencies were started in the early 70's to both stop the pollution and be a watch dog for big business, and stop their blatant contamination of our waterways. In my opinion, through natural attrition of many the offending plants, progressive technology, and better awareness and support by the public, they have indeed done their job.
But now with fewer things for them to do, and for the sake of self importance and job security, it seems they have turned their attention to what I'd call (overkill payback) on certain industries and companies. With comsumption warnings often adding needed public and moral fuel to their hightened accusations. I'm not a water quality expert, but ironically I've personally noticed a drastic change (for the better) while fishing on many of the waterways they seem to have singled out for consumption warnings. Most on the waterways these target companies still utilize in their industry production. We will always need watch dogs, but trained to bite only the people truly dangerous to us.
We all have to take care not to drift to far the other way, and become so ridiculous in our concerns, that we destroy or bankrupt the industries that pays our wages, keeps our local economies and infrastructure working, and allows us the time and money to enjoy the outdoors to begin with. Humans by nature are parasitic. It's sad, but it's a fact. We are users of every resource on this earth and give virtually nothing back to it. We need to preserve and keep as much of a balance as we can while we can, but keep in mind our human survival. If you take care of, properly clean and cook the fish you catch in the proper fashion, and eat them in moderation, I don't see or feel (after a life time of eating them) the problems they see, especially now. Pass the tartar sauce.  
Edited by walleye express 8/21/2005 8:07 AM
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Location: Otterlake MI | i have to agree with CAPT.DAN i have eaten fish out of the Tibb,ST.CLAIR RIVER AND LAKE and also lake ERIE when they where saying not to because the puoltion was to high hasen't killed me yet allthought i do twitch and the wife say i glow( lol )but in reality i think if properly cleaned(belly fat and the latteral line and redish brown tissue on the fillet ) that we probobly get more chemicals out of the beef and pork we buy at the stores just my 2 cents worth |
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Location: Menasha, WI | Cutting the fat wil not reduce the mercury -- it settles in the flesh. Dioxin, however, is more prevelant in the fat. The main concern is for children and women who are or plan to become pregnant. Mercury can affect nervous system devlopment and can create a host of problems. The National Academy of Sciences has reviewed and judged the EPA warnings to be appropriate. |
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Location: Rhinelander | I live in an area that has mercury pollution in seepage and drainage lakes no where even remotely close to any industry. One little lake I fish has a mercury warning sign warning not ot eat ANY mature gamefish, and only one meal a week of panfish and is miles from any water man has polluted. The mercury and other metals are in our soil here, and have worked their way into the water naturally and through acid rain leeching. We also have paper mills here on the Wisconsin, so that's a factor with several types of pollution; mostly mercury again.
Then there's Lake Michigan and heavy industry, which I fish for salmon and walleyes. Bay of Green Bay is one place I promise you I won't eat walleyes from, the nasty flavor is enough to run me off. The fishing is incredible there and the walleyes more than plentiful, but the paper mill flavor is something I can't get past. I do eat several meals of salmon a month from Port Washington off the Charter 'The Pirate'.
Chicken has antibiotics and other chemicals introduced and still has bacteria, beef has all sorts of stuff in it that doesn't belong there if you believe the stuff one reads, and ocean fish has pollutants. I'm not sure anyone CAN avoid consuming our own created poisons anymore.
We eat almost no store bought meat here at Worrall's Hideout. We have grouse, deer, fish, and bunnies out on my 270 acre piece of land, and during the hunting season we take care of our year's needs pretty easily. My wife likes pork chops and steak, so we buy one pig a year from a local farm meat market. I suspect if I lived in the Frozen Tundra, I might be a bit better off, but we eat pretty healthy stuff at home. Eyelaw is right too, one needs to pay attention to where the worst of the bad stuff is stored in the fish, and remove that portion before consumption.
I think it'll kill you alot faster eating mostly 'fast food', but that's my opinion. |
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Posts: 2680
Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | All of these observations of course are correct. I think what twisted my underware into a knot, was the absolute faith the original poster has in the science and conclusions of the DEQ and EPA. It seems as the federal watchdogs science gets better, their water quality prognosis become more bleek. In my own area, we've not seen water this clean in 50 years. But don't expect that good news to make the local newspaper.
Edited by walleye express 8/21/2005 12:50 PM
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Posts: 279
Location: Rockford MN | I think the Great lakes in a whole has new super clean waters, however most of that has to do with Zebs not mans efforts to clean up anything! To bad those Zebs can't clean Mercury from the water ways! |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Yes, *TWITCH, TWITCH* I do occasionally eat fish from round here. Green Bay itself is not too bad these days but I am mindful of the pollution. And Steve is also very correct about inland lakes.
I guess all a guy can do is be mindful of what he is eating, be sure to line his hat with aluminum foil to keep the aliens from controlling you and be glad you don't need lights at night....
Seriously though, I was also reading that farm raised fish are suposed to be bad for you, something about higher concentrations of certain elements build up in their flesh. It seems the feed they use is bad for doing the buildup of certain things. So I am thinking we are supposed to eat free range fish? Fish that live in the wilds of the briny deep.
Apparently, some ocean caught fish are bad for you due to metals and toxins buildup as a result of how bad we poison our planet. Though this article was a bit suspect as the author kept pointing to Soy based foods for protien and the use of organic suppliments to replace oils and minerals lost, so I suspect a hiden agenda there....
Also any fish that come from the western Europe/Russian lands are bad for you. Fish listed as Euorpean Walleye (Farm Raised Zander) are specifically bad as the Russians etc have waters more poluted than us.
I did buy some frozen fish once, Pollock from China that was listed as Alaskan Walleye. They were flash frozen but they used some solution of salt water, citric acid and sugar to preserve the fish. And of course I didn't read that part until I got them home. I tried one, and buried the rest in a landfill. I wouldn't give them to an enemy let alone a friend. YUCK!
And you know the story about the Great Lakes and their major rivers...and now Steve points out that even near pristine waters have fish that are bad to eat. I suppose if one does a bit of looking, all Canadian fish will be suspect as well, I did read one article about fish taken from the Canadian side of the Great Lakes and another questioning how fish in some of the more pristine sheild lakes can be suspect.
Market purchased "fresh fish" are also bad juju due to never really being fresh as it takes some time to get them up to market. Many "fresh" fish are flash frozen, then thawed when displayed in the market case. Which by definition makes them frozen fish, and changes the texture of the flesh.
What sort of chance does that give a guy? I guess we need to see what kind of fish come from the sahara desert, as that was definately not on the list of bad places, where you are not to eat fish you catch.
Edited by Nofish 8/21/2005 5:35 PM
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Location: Rockford MN | Ralph
I would'nt eat walleye's out of Green Bay either! Just the smell in the livewell after you put them in there is bad enough! lol Stinky!!!!!!! They sure are fun to catch up shallow, and swim away just as nice. Come on up to the cool clean waters of MN. and eat a few, you will find the taste difference. I like to grill walleye not deep fry and you can taste a difference from lake to lake. I love to fish Green Bay I think it's one of the best walleye waters in the upper midwest, just not a good place to catch and eat. |
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