PITTSBURGH -- Residents of Pittsburgh gathered today at Hair by Conroy to volunteer their time and a small sample of their hair for a nationwide scientific study on mercury poisoning conducted by Greenpeace.

“When Greenpeace asked to use my salon for hair sampling, I jumped at the chance. We need to stop the dirty energy industry and the Bush administration from polluting our air, water and food,” said salon owner Tom Conroy.

The public testing event, the fourth such event in Pennsylvania this summer, collects data for the Greenpeace National Hair Sampling Study of Mercury Exposure. The tests highlight the growing concern over the toxic levels of mercury in people’s bodies.

The Greenpeace Mercury Study was created in reaction to a Bush Administration proposal to weaken the Clinton-era decision that would have reduced mercury emissions from power plants, a leading cause of mercury pollution in the United States.