Scientists say Mead safe for fishing, swimming

Friday, July 9, 1999 | 12:18 p.m.

Scientists have good news for sports fishermen and swimmers who enjoy Lake Mead.

Early results from studies under way by federal, state and university scientists showed no health threats to the fish from mercury or other heavy metals, which are common in the West because of past mining operations.

Scientists reported early test results to the Lake Mead Water Quality Forum meeting at the Sawyer State Office Building on Thursday.

Scientist Jim Cizdziel, working at the Environmental Protection Agency's Las Vegas laboratory, used a punch to remove a plug of tissue from the backs of more than 100 fish in the Las Vegas Bay and others swimming in Lake Mead's waters.

Cizdziel said the Lake Mead fish were within safe levels and that levels in fish from the bay and the Las Vegas Wash were even lower.

Even selenium -- a mineral found in Western waters that has been a problem in California because of its high concentrations -- is not a threat to Southern Nevada's fish, scientist James LaBounty from the Bureau of Reclamation said.

Scientists, however, are still studying sport fish for possible chemical disruptions of their reproductive organs, Steve Goodbred of the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Birth control chemicals that find their way into the waste water can actually become stronger after sewage treatment, affecting the reproductive systems of fish. Ingredients in sunscreen and perfumes can also affect fish, Goodbred said.

"We may be putting a host of drugs and other chemicals into the wash and bay," he said. Studies are under way to determine how these chemicals combine in the water and how they affect fish.