A mercurial debate. (Letters From Our Readers).Your excellent and informative coverage of the dangers of mercury ("Heavy Metal Harm" cover story, May/June 2002) made me wonder something. If the "pro-lifers" are so concerned about the health of fetuses, why aren't they out in the streets protesting and demanding that the Bush Administration do something about heavy metal and polychlorinated biphenyl polychlorinated biphenyl or PCB, any of a group of organic compounds originally widely used in industrial processes but later found to be dangerous environmental pollutants. (PCB PCB: see polychlorinated biphenyl. PCB in full polychlorinated biphenyl Any of a class of highly stable organic compounds prepared by the reaction of chlorine with biphenyl, a two-ring compound. ) pollution in our lakes, rivers and oceans? William Montgomery William Montgomery is a name shared by several notable men:
The article "Heavy Metal Harm" was highly informative and even shocking. The link between human health, seafood consumption and coal-fired plants clearly highlights the environmental and public health problems that we face as a society. The fact that swordfish swordfish, large food and game fish, Xiphias gladius, of the warmer Atlantic and Pacific waters, related to the sailfish. It is named for its sharp, broad, elongated upper jaw, which it uses to flail and pierce its prey of smaller fish, rising beneath a school and tuna consumption are now considered dangerous to our health sets off alarms about the state of our oceans and our environment. Furthermore, we should also avoid eating swordfish because it is caught primarily by industrial longline long·line n. A heavy fishing line usually several miles long and having a series of baited hooks. long fishers. This wasteful industry catches and kills thousands of endangered sea turtles, sharks, sea birds and more. Eliminating swordfish from our diet will go a long way towards protecting human health as well as saving endangered sea turtles. Doug Israel, Project Director, Sea Turtle Restoration Project, San Francisco, CA After reading "Heavy Metal Harm" I realized that there is an utter lack of concern among many people not only for the terrible waste due to overfishing Overfishing occurs when fishing activities reduce fish stocks below an acceptable level. This can occur in any body of water from a pond to the oceans. More precise biological and bioeconomic terms define 'acceptable level'. , but also about the high levels of mercury in tuna and swordfish. While I feel that very little of the mercury problem is the fishing industry's fault, I think it is morally and ethically wrong to knowingly poison people. We must start considering our future generations as more valuable than financial gains. Joy Maniscalco, via e-mail |
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