Possessing or eating fish and other seafood with unsafe levels of mercury is banned only from the upper part of Lavaca Bay in southeast Texas. John Villanacci, director of health risk assessment at the TDH, said the federal Food and Drug Administration allows up to 1.0 part per million mercury in fish before it should not be eaten. The EPA has a lower standard at which it believes there may be a health risk. Villanacci said the Texas standard is around 0.7 parts per million. But he added that if consumption patterns or pollution levels warrant it, warnings and advisories can be posted at lower levels.
All states set their own threshold for posting warnings.
Some are higher and some lower than Texas', Villanacci said. The federal report due this week from the Environmental Protection Agency likely will amend the agency's mercury recommendations. Environmentalists believe the EPA will lower the levels at which it believes harm could occur. I wouldn't be surprised if you see the numbers come up, not down. That wouldn't be appropriate.