Coal-burning power plants are the leading source of mercury contamination in Texas – home to five of the nation’s top 10 plants for mercury emissions.  

When mercury is released into the air, it settles in rivers, lakes, and streams.  The Texas Department of Health has issued fish consumption advisories for over 329,000 acres of lakes and rivers, including the entire Gulf of Mexico.  Bacteria in the water convert it to methyl mercury, a very toxic form of mercury. The toxic mercury builds up (bioaccumulates) in the bodies of animals.  Eating contaminated fish is the main way people are exposed to unsafe levels of mercury.  Unlike with some pathogens, there is no way to clean or cook mercury out of fish.  

Mercury is a potent neurotoxin that causes learning and developmental disabilities in children. A mother can pass mercury on to her baby during pregnancy and later during breastfeeding.  One in six U.S. women, of childbearing age, has mercury in their bodies at levels that may adversely affect their unborn child.  Mercury is also associated with heart attacks in older men.

Clean Water Fund and allies in the Alliance for a Clean Texas are calling for a state moratorium on permits for coal-burning power plants to give the public and policy makers time to consider alternatives and to ensure that any new plants utilize the best available technology to curb pollution. In addition, energy efficiency standards for Texas must be improved in order to promote renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.