
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, May 19, 1990                   TAG: 9005190188
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

PEAK CREEK FISH TESTS NEED TO BE ANALYZED

A state lab returned results from fish testing on the Peak Creek portion of Claytor Lake to the Water Control Board on Friday afternoon - after a two-week delay. But the board still is waiting for answers.

Results from the tests, which were to determine whether the fish tissue contains some of the same heavy metals that have been found in the creek's sediments, were sent on to the New River Valley Health District for analysis. Officials there will determine whether eating the fish could be harmful to human health.

Margaret Robinson, director of the health district, has said it would probably take about a week to do a complete analysis.

Heavy metals, including iron, zinc, lead and selenium, are responsible for giving the creek's water a reddish tint, according to reports from the Water Control Board. The red coloring also has been spotted in Claytor Lake after heavy rains.

Most of the metals are leaching into the water from the old Allied Chemical site in Pulaski, according to the board. Downtown East Inc., the limited partnership now owning the site, has been instructed to stop the runoff.

- New River Valley bureau

by CNB