Warning: Fish from Lake Elmo are most toxic in the state

Officials have given Lake Elmo an unwelcome distinction — home of the most toxic fish in the state.

The Department of Health on Thursday announced that no fish from the lake should be eaten by anyone, because they contain high levels of a chemical manufactured by the 3M Co.

Fish-eating bans usually apply to certain species of fish, or to certain people, such as pregnant women. But the complete ban on Lake Elmo fish is the state’s first among fish-eating restrictions for 1,410 Minnesota lakes.

In a conference call with reporters, officials also said that no one should eat largemouth bass from Lake Harriet in Minneapolis because they contain the same chemical pollutant.

It issued tougher fish-eating restrictions for four other lakes, for various types of fish and for varying populations — Bde Maka Ska (formerly Calhoun) and Lake of the Isles in Minneapolis, Lake Johanna in Arden Hills and Twin Lake in Brooklyn Center.

More restrictive advisories were also applied to Pool 2 of the Mississippi River, between the Ford Dam in St. Paul and Hastings.

The fish in these four lakes and the Mississippi contain high levels of PFOS, or perfluorooctane sulfonate, formerly used by Maplewood-based 3M to make nonstick cookware and fire-extinguishing foam.

Officials said that the levels of the pollutant have been dropping statewide — but not in the waters of Lake Elmo. They aren’t sure why, but suspect that the pollution is coming from the former 3M dump site in Oakdale.

“This is certainly a problem,” said Lake Elmo Mayor Mike Pearson. “It is discomforting to the whole city, and fishermen in particular.”

3M had been sued for $5 billion by the state attorney general, because the chemicals seeped into the environment. The company paid $850 million in February to settle the lawsuit, and officials said the money would be spent to help improve the quality of drinking water.

Pearson said the state should act quickly to give Lake Elmo a portion of the money.

In a separate lawsuit, the St. Paul suburb is suing 3M for $25 million for expenses related to cleaning the pollutants out of city drinking water.

“This just underscores the fact that Lake Elmo is ground zero for this concern,” said Pearson.

“But it’s important to recognize that people can use the lake, with the exception of adding fish to their diet.”

The state’s announcement came 10 days before the state’s fishing opener May 12. Health department Assistant Commissioner Paul Allwood hopes that the new advisories don’t discourage people from fishing.

“There are plenty of other fish in many other lakes,” he said. “There are thousands of other lakes, rivers streams waiting for you.”

Pat McCann, the advisory program manager for the department, said that most of the 1,410 fish advisories involve mercury. Some warn fishermen about the chemical pollutant PCB, and a relatively small number in the metro area and near Duluth are related to PFOA.

3M dumped PFOA in landfills — legally — ending in 1975. 3M stopped manufacturing the chemical in 2002, but in 2004 traces of chemicals were discovered in the drinking water of about 65,000 Washington County residents.

Officials discovered an underground plume of pollution coming from the landfill sites, in Oakdale, Lake Elmo, Woodbury and Cottage Grove.

Before eating fish from in Minnesota lakes, the state Department of Natural Resources recommends checking its Lake-Finder website at www.dnr.state.mn.us/lakefind/index.html.

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