Reps. Chide EPA For Lack Of Action, Information On Intersex Fish - ENN

WASHINGTON — Federal lawmakers Wednesday criticized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for not moving faster to determine whether "intersex" fish in the Potomac River and its tributaries signal the presence of pollutants that might be harmful to humans. At a House Government Reform Committee hearing, lawmakers and environmental groups expressed alarm at a survey last year by the U.S. Geological Survey that found an unusually high number of male smallmouth and largemouth bass with female sexual characteristics.

They also worried that the presence of egg-bearing males at locations in Washington, Maryland and Virginia could be a sign that something is dangerously amiss. "Fish are like canaries in the coal mine," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.

It is not clear what is causing the changes, though a combination of chemical pollutants is suspected. The reaction could be triggered by estrogen from birth control pills and human waste that makes its way into the waterways from sewage treatment plants, or manmade chemicals in pesticides and cosmetics. Pollutants that interfere with the hormones of myriad animals have been a concern for about 10 years. Intersex fish were first discovered in the Potomac rivershed in 2003, about 200 miles upstream from Washington.

Since 1996, the EPA has been trying to develop a screening program to identify these so-called "endocrine disruptors" that are confusing the fish's reproductive systems. But the agency says the science has proven to be complicated and research is still ongoing. Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., said that taking 10 years was entirely too long. "It seems (the EPA) looks for any excuse it can find to delay the implementation of regulations that could affect the public's health," he said.

EDIT

http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=11386

Hmm . . .
1. Anybody notice how the only Congresscritters quoted here are Democrats?
2. Poor EPA - they probably couldn't get into their libraries and so had no access to data!

I thought it was frogs that were the enviromental canaries, or have they already died out on the Potomac? they seem to dropping dead everywhere else. :(