State officials this week made changes to site specific sport fish consumption advisories around the state, but the general advisory of eating no more than one meal a week of sport fish remains in effect.

Site specific restriction changes include—

· Allegheny River: a one-meal-per-month mercury advisory has been modified to a two-meals-per-month advisory for walleye in the Allegheny River from the Warren/Forest county line to the confluence of Tubbs Run in Forest County;

· Cheat/Monongahela Rivers: a do-not-eat advisory for white bass due to chlordane has been lifted for the Cheat Lake River from the Cheat Lake Dam to its mouth, and for the Monongahela River from Point Marion to Grays Landing Lock and Dam in Fayette and Greene counties;

· Schuylkill River: a do-not-eat advisory for brook trout and a six-meals-per-year advisory for rainbow and brown trout due to polychlorinated biphenyl, or PCB, contamination in the Schuylkill River from the confluence of Mill Creek at Port Carbon to Auburn Dam in Schuylkill County;

· Mahoning/Shenango Rivers: a one-meal-per-month PCB advisory for smallmouth bass on the Beaver River from the confluence of the Mahoning and Shenango rivers to the New Brighton Dam in Beaver and Lawrence Counties; and

· Eaton Reservoir: a two-meals-per-month mercury advisory for walleye on the Eaton Reservoir in Erie County.

“The information provided in fish consumption advisories helps people plan what fish to keep and how often and how much of their catch to eat,” Fish and Boat Commission Executive Director Dr. Douglas Austen. “By providing detailed advisories, we enable anglers and others who eat recreationally caught sport fish to make informed decisions.”

All recreationally caught sport fish in Pennsylvania are subject to a one-meal-per-week consumption advisory. This blanket advisory is designed to protect the general population, especially pregnant women, women of childbearing years and young children. One meal is considered to be one-half pound of fish for a 150-pound person.

The advisories do not apply to fish raised for commercial purposes or bought in stores or restaurants.

“Consumption advisories are not intended to discourage anyone from fishing or eating fresh fish in moderation,” DEP Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty said. “Our goal is to make sure anglers have the best available information as they fish Pennsylvania’s waterways.”

“When properly prepared, fish provide a diet high in protein and low in saturated fats,” Dr. Johnson said. “People can get the health benefits of eating fish and reduce exposure to organic contaminants by properly cleaning, skinning, trimming and cooking the fish they eat.”

Proper preparation generally includes trimming away fat and broiling or grilling the fish to allow remaining fat to drip away. Juices and fats that cook out of the fish should not be eaten or reused for cooking or preparing other foods. Mercury, however, collects in the fish’s muscle and cannot be reduced by cleaning and cooking methods.

Current and updated advisories for 2005 are published in the Summary of Fishing Regulations and Laws provided to each purchaser of Pennsylvania fishing licenses.

For more information visit the Fish Advisories webpage.

NewsClip: Fish & Boat Commission Updates Fish Advisories

12/2/2005