Pollution

[AdamLasVegas]

This is my first post been visiting for a while but signed up finally.


I was curious, how big of a threat is pollution to the future of freshwater pearls? Most of them come from China and we all know China, being a country going through rapid industrialization, like many other countires have, faces a pollution problem. I have heard about Japanese freshwater pearls, like from lake Biwa being destroyed by pollution and others.

Is it a matter of time before we start seeing shortages or is there a way to overcome this?

Cheers

Adam

 

[KAC]

Hi Adam,

I don't think it is much of an issue since most freshwater pearls are grown in man made ponds built specificaly for this purpose. The only issue I could see is if the surrounding soil gets contaminated and leaks into the ponds.

 

[R Garten]

Of course things could happen, but I think the farmers and the countries involved with culturing pearls are much more cautious these days, as they are aware of the dangers, and the huge upside in protecting the cultured pearl industry.

 

[purepearls]

Chinese farmers are very aware of these issues and Lake Biwa has been a wake-up call to many. The farmers take precautions to keep pollution at bay but only time will tell how things will unravel for the future. The huge industrialization of China does bring concern for environmentalists.

 

[KAC]

the countries involved with culturing pearls are much more cautious these days,

China is one of the largest polluting countries on earth - to say that they are conscious of environmental issues is laughable.

That being said, the method used to culture freshwater pearls(man made ponds) provides unintentional protection to the mollusks.

 

[AdamLasVegas]

I had a feeling they might use man made ponds, like some fish farms. Does the quality go down in any way when it is a man made pond?

I will take wild salmon over farm salmon any day! mmm smoked sockeye...

 

[Slraep]

Hi Adam,

Have you read the other thread Morna started?

https://www.pearl-guide.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1748

Slraep

 

[Slraep]

I had a feeling they might use man made ponds, like some fish farms. Does the quality go down in any way when it is a man made pond?

I will take wild salmon over farm salmon any day! mmm smoked sockeye...

Sorry to have to tell you Adam---wild Atlantic salmon is on the NO EAT list at the moment. Too much PCBs, dioxins and pesticides.

Check out some other fish you thought was safe....

http://www.oceansalive.org/eat.cfm?subnav=healthalerts


Slraep

 

[AdamLasVegas]

Hi Adam,

Have you read the other thread Morna started?

https://www.pearl-guide.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1748

Slraep

Interesting, thanks!

 

[AdamLasVegas]

Sorry to have to tell you Adam---wild Atlantic salmon is on the NO EAT list at the moment. Too much PCBs, dioxins and pesticides.

Check out some other fish you thought was safe....

http://www.oceansalive.org/eat.cfm?subnav=healthalerts


Slraep

The sockeye is a Pacific ocean fish. The benfits of eating fish far outway any trace elements. Check your water report, chances are it does not meet federal guidlines. Why because the Govt. lowered the allowable amount. If you live in a large city the air has all sorts of VOCs etc. It is not going to stop me, but this is another subject, I will focus on the pearls.

 

[Slraep]

The sockeye is a Pacific ocean fish. The benfits of eating fish far outway any trace elements. Check your water report, chances are it does not meet federal guidlines. Why because the Govt. lowered the allowable amount. If you live in a large city the air has all sorts of VOCs etc. It is not going to stop me, but this is another subject, I will focus on the pearls.

Yes, you are right, sockeye is a Pacific salmon. I think I'll pass on the eating of fish though---trace elements are fine, it's the heavy metals, PCBs, dioxins and pesticides in every ocean that are scaring me. You can get omega 3 and 6 in hemp oil. I want to give up breathing air too, you know, become anaerobic, but that hasn't worked out very well so far. Haven't found a good substitute yet.

Slraep

 

[KAC]

yes Sockey are a species of Pacific Salmon we have around my home waters. They are not farmed anywhere on the west coast of Canada and only live 2-3 years, so they do not build up toxins like long living fish do.

All Pacific Salmon(Chinook,Coho,Sockeye,Pink,Chum) are relatively short living fish(Average 3 years, Max 7). This means that no Pacific salmon will ever build up high levels of toxins, like say halibut or blue fin tuna will.

Interesting thread Slraep - I did miss that.

 

[boo]

Sorry to have to tell you Adam---wild Atlantic salmon is on the NO EAT list at the moment. Too much PCBs, dioxins and pesticides.

Check out some other fish you thought was safe....

http://www.oceansalive.org/eat.cfm?subnav=healthalerts


Slraep

This has less to do with the quality of the flesh than the quality of the environment, but for those who are interested, the Monterey Bay Aquarium has a Seafood Watch program to help guide consumers to make environmentally conscious decisions about the seafood they eat:
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/SeafoodWatch/web/sfw_factsheet.aspx?gid=17


I love the taste of shark, but I haven't eaten it since I was a kid because even 25 years ago it was obvious that shark fishing is a bad idea where the long term health of shark populations is concerned.