Subsistence Fisheries and the Exxon Valdez: Human Health Concerns

Abstract

ABSTRACT As a result of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, many residents of villages in Prince William Sound, Lower Cook Inlet, the Alaska Peninsula, and Kodiak Island were alarmed by the prospect that their subsistence food supply might have been contaminated by oil and thus present an increased health risk. Although major oil spills have occurred in the past, no database has been developed on human health effects resulting from the consumption of oil-contaminated food. This information gap and the time lag of several months required to develop relevant data were the principal impediments to rapidly addressing the villagers’ concerns. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was asked by the federal on-scene coordinator and the Alaska Oil Spill Health Task Force to take an active role in addressing the subsistence food safety concerns of native villagers. Specific issues of concern to villagers included the following: Were subsistence foods contaminated as a result of the spill? Could subsistence foods be screened or tested by villagers to detect contamination? Did consumption of subsistence foods pose a health risk, either immediate (acute) or long-term (chronic)? What species in what areas were safe to eat? Answering these questions involved researching the screening and testing equipment and protocols in existence, developing and implementing a sampling program, selecting techniques and a laboratory to conduct the analyses, and identifying experts to evaluate the analytical data as they might relate to the human health risk. This paper describes the activities and findings of the NOAA subsistence program; it does not address occupational health issues associated with the oil spill.