Current Uses of the Fish Consumption Rate
Presentation Abstract
Current Uses of the Fish Consumption Rate By Rory O’Rourke Environmental Scientist, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe For the 2014 Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Session Title: “Washington Fish Consumption Rate: one number, hundreds of human health and environmental management decisions, millions of consumers” The fish consumption rate is a per-capita estimate of total daily finfish and shellfish from local waters used to calculate the water quality standards. In Washington, tribal consumption has been the main focus due to tribal members’ increased exposure to modern and legacy pollutants through subsistence treaty harvest. While much effort has been made on deriving an accurate and protective fish consumption rate, much of that work will not be taken into account when determining cleanup standards since is often limited by policy and practically by the detection limits and natural/regional background. These decisions can substantially impact the selection and effectiveness of remedies. Any toxics reduction is important to consider, even if the final standard is still above human health-risk levels based on tribal exposure scenarios. While a state agency might consider one alternative marginally beneficial, a tribal community might consider those same options to be a dramatic improvement. Therefore, it is important to collaborate with the local community in order to select remedies that address concerns related to designated uses and treaty rights. In addition, state agencies should work with tribal communities to address what further steps should be taken to reduce health risks when cleanup standards are still above health-based standards. These issues will be presented in the context of the Port Gamble S’Klallam community and the cleanup of Port Gamble Bay.
Session Title
Session S-03B: Washington Fish Consumption Rate: One Number, Hundreds of Human Health and Environmental Management Decisions, Millions of Consumers
Conference Track
Toxics
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
30-4-2014 3:30 PM
End Date
30-4-2014 5:00 PM
Location
Room 608-609
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Fish as food--Contamination--Washington (State)--Gamble, Port (Bay); Fishes--Environmental aspects-Washington (State)--Gamble, Port (Bay); Shellfish--Environmental aspects-Washington (State)--Gamble, Port (Bay)
Geographic Coverage
Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe; Gamble, Port (Bay : Wash.); Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Current Uses of the Fish Consumption Rate
Room 608-609
Current Uses of the Fish Consumption Rate By Rory O’Rourke Environmental Scientist, Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe For the 2014 Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Session Title: “Washington Fish Consumption Rate: one number, hundreds of human health and environmental management decisions, millions of consumers” The fish consumption rate is a per-capita estimate of total daily finfish and shellfish from local waters used to calculate the water quality standards. In Washington, tribal consumption has been the main focus due to tribal members’ increased exposure to modern and legacy pollutants through subsistence treaty harvest. While much effort has been made on deriving an accurate and protective fish consumption rate, much of that work will not be taken into account when determining cleanup standards since is often limited by policy and practically by the detection limits and natural/regional background. These decisions can substantially impact the selection and effectiveness of remedies. Any toxics reduction is important to consider, even if the final standard is still above human health-risk levels based on tribal exposure scenarios. While a state agency might consider one alternative marginally beneficial, a tribal community might consider those same options to be a dramatic improvement. Therefore, it is important to collaborate with the local community in order to select remedies that address concerns related to designated uses and treaty rights. In addition, state agencies should work with tribal communities to address what further steps should be taken to reduce health risks when cleanup standards are still above health-based standards. These issues will be presented in the context of the Port Gamble S’Klallam community and the cleanup of Port Gamble Bay.
