Selenium

A water war is stirring in our state over selenium coming into the water supply from phosphate mining in southeast Idaho.

Phosphate is used in fertilizer and animal feed, and selenium is a mineral we need in tiny quantities for optimal health.

The problem is that too much selenium can be lethal. Six horses and more than 550 sheep in Idaho have died from grazing in forage laced with selenium, and researchers blame selenium for die-offs of salamander, deformed embryos of coot and Canada geese, and the death of beaver, cranes, and pelicans. Fish are absent from two streams in Caribou County, where most of the phosphate mining takes place in Idaho and the location of Grays Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

The war has two fronts. First is the war to stir up some action on the part of the government to deal with selenium pollution, which has been documented for years, and to enforce cleanup of past pollution messes related to mining. The second is to prevent the Simplot company from enlarging their Smoky Canyon phosphate mine near the Idaho-Wyoming border.

Read more: "Environmentalist say feds colluded with phosphate companies to cover up pollution," Salt Lake Tribune.

And this: Facts about selenium. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.