SUSAN SERVES AS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER FOR THE AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY, THE COVE: MERCURY RISING
Did you know that over 70% of the toxic mercury in our environment is the result of industrial activities and human pollution? Mercury accumulates in the atmosphere and makes its way up the marine food chain, ultimately leading to dangerously high concentrations of the metal in the species of fish favored by many humans, like tuna, swordfish and mackerel. In humans, mercury is a powerful neurotoxin that at elevated levels may lead to cancer, slow growth, brain, and kidney damage. After becoming critically ill with mercury poisoning a decade ago, Susan emerged determined to shed light on this environmental and human health catastrophe. Together with her husband, Jim, and their filmmaking partners, Susan executive produced the impactful film Mercury Rising.
As a companion piece to the Sundance hit and 2010 Academy Award-winning documentary, The Cove, that tracked the secret butchering of dolphins in a rural Japanese beach community, The Cove: Mercury Rising is a short documentary that explores the dangers of mercury contamination as it affects society and the global environment. Included on The Cove DVD, Mercury Rising highlights interviews with environmental crusader, Robert Kennedy, Jr. and advocates for stronger regulations of mercury emissions.
Launched in tandem with the film is a mercury-level-calculator website, which allows people to check mercury exposure from fish on-line or from a cell phone based on their weight, fish type and serving size. The calculator is available at GotMercury.org and takepart.com/GotMercury