EPA issues stricter limitations on fish

SANDUSKY

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency on Friday released new, stricter limitations on fish consumption in local waterways.

The agency advises anglers to limit meals of Lake Erie-caught channel catfish and common carp larger than 27 inches to once every two months because of PCB levels.

PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, were commonly used in manufacturing until banned in the United States for high toxicity levels in 1979. They still persist in the environment and have been classified by the EPA as a possible cancer-causing substance.

For information call the Ohio EPA at 800-755-4769 or click HERE.

Other Lake Erie-caught fish under advisory because of PCBs include Chinook salmon larger than 19 inches, Coho salmon, common carp smaller than 27 inches, freshwater drum, small mouth bass, steelhead trout, white bass, whitefish and white perch. They should not be eaten more than once per month.

Lake Erie-caught rock bass should not be eaten more than once per month because of PCB and mercury levels. Brown bullhead and largemouth bass should not be eaten more than once per month because of high mercury levels.

Mercury poses the greatest health risk for women of child-bearing age, pregnant and nursing mothers, and children under 15, according to the EPA. Mercury has been shown to cause neurological damage and impair child development.

Portage River anglers are advised not to consume channel catfish and common carp more than once every two months because of PCBs.

Common carp caught in Toussaint Creek from U.S. 23 to Lake Erie should not be consumed more than once per month.

Statewide, unless otherwise specified, anglers should not consume fish more than once per week because of high mercury levels.

The restrictions on fish consumption are updated annually based on samples collected during the previous fishing season. Researchers evaluated 496 samples for the latest advisory.