Development of Consistent Mercury Advisories in the Gulf of Mexico
Dr. Frederick Kopfler
EPA Gulf of Mexico Program

Survey of the Occurrence of Mercury in Fishery Resources of the Gulf of Mexico

An understanding of methylmercury concentrations in edible fish and shellfish tissues is the foundation for public health risk assessments. A regional database - the Gulfwide Mercury in Tissue Database - was created with recent GIS-based tissue monitoring data from the five Gulf States (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas), the USEPA EMAP program, the NOAA NOS National Status and Trends program, and the NMFS GulfChem study. The study area for database analysis included waters within the 94 USGS 8-digit hydrologic unit code watersheds that comprise the major estuarine drainage areas of the Gulf of Mexico, and the nearshore and blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico. We present the occurrence of mercury in 24 estuarine/marine species and species groups (and 3 size classes of king mackerel) commonly harvested in the study area. Species-specific maps show relative mercury concentrations at tissue sample sites across the Gulf of Mexico. Based on input from the Gulf of Mexico Program's Mercury Project Advisory/Review Committee, we present recommendations for Gulf-region tissue monitoring program enhancements.

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