Conversation

Over the course of 33 years Mallinckrodt, a subsidary of Medtronic, a global multi-billion dollar medical device company, dumped 12 metric tons of mercury into the Penobscot river, (a river sacred to my peoples, and the largest river in the state) and over 9 tons of said mercury still remains in the river. Fish, birds, lobster, eel, and people throughout the system and region are contaminated with mercury, levels among birds nesting and feeding along the river are among the highest found anywhere in the world, consumption of fish and birds along this portion of river could cause serious harm. This is a river in which the Penobscot people are supposed to have "sustainable fishing rights" due to our treaty. The state still maintains they are upholding that, though we can't eat more than a fish a month without risking illness. There has been a court battle against Mallinckrodt since 2000, they have been found responsible, and late this year the courts will review appropriate cleanup.