The person who wrote the following Vermont State webpage’s wintertime recreation press release “Fishing is Hot on Lake Champlain… and some memorable fish have been caught in recent weeks” probably didn’t have strontium or cesium in mind. But it certainly blends well with the Vermont chief radiologist’s news that a fish from Northwestern Vermont’s Lake Carmi tested positive for low levels of strontium-90 and cesium-137. The preliminary results are in the same range as found last August in a Connecticut River fish near Vermont Yankee. Bill Irwin, chief of radiological health for the Vermont Department of Health says this provides proof of what he had already decided … err hypothesized:

"We take this as some evidence that all fish in Vermont are likely to have radioactive cesium and strontium at these levels and that, as we’ve hypothesized, it is from nuclear weapons fallout and the releases of Chernobyl. All of us are glad to have proof and not just conjecture."

Good news! Call the tourist board to announce all the Vermont fish contain radioactive strontium 90 and cesium! However, if this shows the Lake Carmi fish was contaminated by nuclear weapons fallout and the Chernobyl disaster I shouldn’t think it takes our leaking Vermont Yankee out of contention as an additional source for contamination of Connecticut River fish.

The Lake Carmi fish had cesium in edible and inedible parts, and strontium only in the sample’s bones, head, fins and scales. By comparison, the Vermont Yankee fish had high levels of strontium 90 in the bones and small but measurable levels in the meat.

A fish taken from the Connecticut River in 2010 had the highest levels of strontium-90 in bone that his department has seen in any samples.  

"In that same sample we did find very low but measurable amounts of strontium-90 in the meat of the fish," said Irwin, which could have been a sampling or contamination error. "But we don’t know that."

The Lake Carmi fish as “proof” (not all “evidence” is “proof”) reminds me of the line from the Nick Danger comedy skit where a supposed time traveler says “I have proof I’ve been to Ancient Greece! See, look at this grape!”The Vermont chief radiologist found a grape.

Just remember, Bill Irwin is a culturally-sensitve guy looking out for you and your radiological health:

"There’s no danger in eating the fish," said Irwin. "Should we ever find that there are reasons to restrict diet from any sampling for any kind of radioactive or toxicological events, we would keep in mind different cultures have different diets."  

Ever wonder how much local fish Bill Irwin eats?