Back in July, I wrote:
Washington State has two choices: a 10-times-higher rate of cancer among its population, particularly those who eat a lot of fish, or a bedraggled economy. That is, assuming you believe big business in the long-running and little-noticed debate over our “fish consumption rate,” a debate that Governor Jay Inslee is expected to settle, with significant consequence, within the next few weeks.
As it turned out, Governor Inslee tried to have it both ways with a proposal that raises the fish consumption rate to a reasonable level and, at the same time, increases the acceptable cancer risk rate by a factor of ten in the formula that determines clean water standards.
Slog tipper and Seattle Human Rights Commission co-chair Ethel Branch, who also has an op-ed for Real Change about the issue, writes that the window for pushing back against Inslee’s increase to the acceptable cancer risk rate is closing fast:
The deadline to submit comments on Washington State’s proposed water quality standards is tonight at midnight. The state proposes a tenfold increase in cancer risk levels for folks who eat fish caught in Washington waters. If you or your loved ones eat shellfish (especially) and finfish, you may want to weigh in on this issue…
You can submit comments directly to the Department of Ecology at swqs@ecy.wa.gov or you can use this link to submit comments urging protection of health and human rights.