Posted: Thursday, October 2, 2008 12:00 am
A study by the Oregon Department of Human Services State Public Health Division recommends that ATI Wah Chang test fish in a nearby lake for contaminants.
The study, called a health consultation, was conducted by the Health Division's Environmental Health Assessment Program (EHAP).
It found that tissue from fish in Second Lake near Wah Chang in Millersburg should be examined to ensure that contamination from Wah Chang poses no danger to people who eat fish from the lake.
DHS discourages people from eating fish from Second Lake and ingesting lake water and swimming in the lake. EHAP evaluated the public health impact of exposure to surface water through drinking, swimming, bathing or wading in Second Lake and also eating fish caught in the lake.
Being exposed to surface water from the lake poses no apparent public health hazard to people who pass through the area or to people who use the lake recreationally. However, fish tissue from Second Lake has not been tested for hazardous chemicals of concern, so eating fish caught from the lake represents an indeterminate public health hazard.
To find out more about chemical levels in the fish, EHAP recommends that Wah Chang develop and implement a plan to sample fish tissue from Second Lake and the nearby Willamette River.
This plan should be approved by EHAP, the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. A hard copy of the report is available at the Albany Public Library, 1390 Waverly Dr. S.E. until Nov. 3, 2008, and it is electronically accessible on the Web at http://oregon.gov/DHS/ph/shine/wcsite.shtml.
The report is open for public review, and EHAP is accepting comments at mehap.info@state.or.us until Nov. 3, 2008.
For questions about the report, contact David Farrer by email at david.g.farrer@state.or.us or by phone at 971-673-0971.