On Saturday, April 13, The Sierra Fund launched our annual effort to post fish consumption advisories at popular water bodies in the Sierra where they apply. This effort seeks to increase access to information about which locally caught fish are safe to eat, and which fish should be avoided due to mercury contamination. Mercury in […]
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Fish consumption advisories posted at popular fishing locations, including new signs at local rivers

Fishing for fun and finding facts was the theme of a family event held at Seaman’s Lodge on Saturday May 21. During the afternoon at Pioneer Park, a family-oriented educational event provided information on which locally caught fish are safe to eat and which are better caught and then released due to high mercury. This event was held in conjunction with the second annual Post It Day volunteer event to post state issued fish consumption advisories at regional water bodies.
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Family fishing season is almost here! Bring the whole family to Pioneer Park, on Saturday, May 21 for the first ever Fishing for Fun, A Family Affair, offering games, activities, an ice cream social, and important information about healthy fish consumption for families. The Sierra Fund, South Yuba River Citizens League and Wolf Creek Community […]
Read MoreEnvironmental Working Group’s new study of over 250 women indicates that “US fish advice may expose babies to too much mercury.” EWG’s newly completed study enrolled 254 women who eat at least two meals of seafood, fish or shellfish every week and measured the amount of mercury in their hair to assess how much mercury was in their bodies. EWG’s study found that almost 30 percent of their participants had too much mercury exposure according to Environmental Protection Agency guidelines for pregnant women.
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On July 11, teams of volunteers organized by the South Yuba River Citizens League, The Sierra Fund and the Wolf Creek Community Alliance traveled to popular fishing locations and posted 98 fish consumption advisory signs. This was the first time these state-issued fish consumption guidelines had ever been posted at these water bodies. Anglers now have the information they need to make smart decisions on what fish are safe to eat and feed to their families.
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Volunteer to post fish consumption advisories at local lakes and reservoirs: Saturday, July 11, 2015, 9am~5pm (Ending times will vary). The Sierra Fund, in collaboration with South Yuba River Citizens League and Wolf Creek Community Alliance, is organizing a community volunteer effort to post state-issued fish consumption advisories at local lakes and reservoirs, and we need your help! Help us post educational signage to give anglers the best information regarding healthy choices on sport fish consumption, specifically which fish caught from these water bodies are best for eating, and feeding their families.
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The Sierra Fund is pleased to announce that we have received funding from the Cal/EPA Environmental Justice Small Grants Program to increase awareness of Sierra anglers about mercury in fish. Working with South Yuba River Citizens League, Wolf Creek Community Alliance, and local volunteers, we will lead a community effort that will result in state-issued fish consumption guidelines posted at public access points of popular fishing lakes and reservoirs.
Read MoreEnvironmental Working Group and Mercury Policy Project are studying mercury exposures for American women. The project is seeking to enroll 200 to 400 women who eat seafood frequently, and a comparison group of women who eat little or no seafood. Study participants will be asked to provide a small sample of hair for analysis, and […]
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The Sierra Fund’s science team is venturing into the world of fishing in the name of public health. But in order to expand our impact by analyzing more fish tissue samples, we need YOU to help. We are working to raise $7,500 over the next month to cover the costs of having the fish tissue analyzed at an EPA-certified lab in order to be used as official public health information. We will begin fishing this fall at Rollins Reservoir and with your help continue our efforts at other water bodies. Our goal is to raise enough money to catch and analyze 250 more fish for mercury. There are two ways you can help, and both take under a minute
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This brochure covers precautionary measures to take when choosing which locally-caught fish to eat. The brochure was created as a follow up to The Sierra Fund’s two studies on human exposure to legacy mining toxins. High levels of mercury are common in certain species of fish in the Sierra Nevada. Mercury is known to cause serious health problems, especially for developing children and babies.
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The Sierra Fund is proud to release a new report detailing activities, results, and lessons learned from a year-long pilot outreach program in four Sierra communities. The short term goals of this program were to prevent and reduce exposure to mercury from locally caught fish in Sierra communities, and to raise awareness about mercury in the fish and other mine-related toxins, among community members, leaders, and healthcare providers. The long term goal is to build a movement to clean up sources of legacy mining pollution in the Sierra.
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This ten-page report outlines goals, activities, and lessons learned from The Sierra Fund’s 1-year pilot outreach program about environmental health threats associated with abandoned mines. Goals of the program were to prevent and reduce exposure to mercury from locally caught fish in Sierra communities; to raise awareness about mercury in the fish and other mine-related […]
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