Good news...

Over 96% of the fish in Grand Lake and Lake Hudson had mercury levels below the U.S. EPA’s guideline for women of childbearing age and children who eat fish 2 to 3 times a month. And 77% of fish were below the guideline for women of childbearing age and children who eat fish 2 to 3 times a week.

About 95% of our participants had hair mercury levels below the U.S. EPA’s guideline for children and women of childbearing age. Our results were similar to results for people in other parts of the U.S. Our results suggest that people who eat fish from the Grand Lake Watershed are not more exposed to mercury in their diet than other people who eat fish.

Hair mercury levels in our study population were similar to hair mercury levels in the general population, both regionally and nationally. The average amount of fish that our participants ate each month was above the U.S. average but below the average for people who typically eat fish.

... but a few fish had high mercury.

Around 4% of the fish we tested had mercury levels that were above EPA’s guideline for mercury in fish. These included flathead catfish, largemouth bass, and drum, especially longer and older fish that had had more time to build up mercury in their bodies.