New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Pete Grannis Wednesday announced the release of a draft plan for reducing mercury in the waters of New York State and New England to eliminate fish consumption advisories caused by mercury from air deposition. Seven states -- New York, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont -- collaborated with the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission to produce the plan, entitled the draft Northeast Regional Mercury Total Maximum Daily Load, which is currently available for public comment.

The participating states believe that mercury deposition deserves to be a national priority, and requires federal programs to address it. The intent of the draft Northeast Regional Mercury TMDL is to create a starting place for initiatives to control atmospheric deposition to levels where fish consumption advisories are no longer necessary.

In the Northeast, elevated levels of mercury in certain fish species, such as largemouth and smallmouth bass and walleye, are of great concern and have resulted in statewide fish consumption advisories for more than 10,000 lakes, ponds, and reservoirs, and over 46,000 river miles in the seven-state region. In New York, more than 80 water bodies have restricted advisories for fish consumption based on elevated levels of mercury. While most of the waters are in the Adirondacks and Catskills, others such as parts of the Hudson and Susquehanna Rivers and Lake Champlain are also affected.