Fish Consumption Advisories Available for 2014
The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) have updated the West Virginia Sport Fish Consumption Advisory for 2014. West Virginia DHHR, through an interagency agreement, partners with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Division of Natural Resources (DNR) to develop consumption advisories for fish caught in West Virginia. Fish consumption advisories are reviewed annually and help West Virginia anglers make educated choices about eating the fish they catch.
Certain West Virginia sport fish have been found to have low levels of chemicals like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), mercury, selenium and dioxin. To protect the good health of West Virginians, the West Virginia DHHR offers an advisory for how often these fish can be safely eaten. An advisory is advice, and should not be viewed as law or regulation. It is intended to help anglers and their families make educated choices about: where to fish, what types of fish to eat, how to limit the amount and frequency of fish eaten, and how to prepare and cook fish to reduce contaminants.
This advisory covers only sport fish caught in West Virginia waters. Safety regulations and advisories for fish in the market place are the responsibility of the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). For more information you can contact the FDA at: http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm110591.htm
The following 2014 advisory recommendation is the result of reviewing new and recent fish tissue data. Data collected from lakes and rivers in West Virginia show that a general statewide advisory of sport-caught fish is appropriate. A review of this information indicates that mercury, PCBs, and dioxin are the chemicals of the greatest concern. If you would like more detailed information about these contaminants and the levels measured, consult the DHHR Web Site at http://www.wvdhhr.org/fish.
Body weight and meal size are important factors in fish advisories. Use this chart to find the size of meal that corresponds to your body weight. This advisory is designed to keep the amount of chemicals you eat at a safe level.
|
Meal Sizes |
|
|
A person weighing between |
Should eat no more than this amount per meal |
|
pounds |
ounces of precooked fish |
|
20 or
less |
1.0 |
|
21-35 |
1.5 |
|
36-50 |
2.0 |
|
51-70 |
3.0 |
|
71-90 |
4.0 |
|
91-110 |
5.0 |
|
111-130 |
6.0 |
|
131-150 |
7.0 |
|
151
and over |
8.0 |
|
Remember that 3.0 ounces of precooked fish is about the size of
the palm of your hand or a deck of cards |
|
|
Remember that 1.5 ounces of precooked fish is about one-half
the size of the palm of your hand or one-half of a deck of cards |
|
Find the meal advice for the fish you’ve caught. “Do Not Eat” means you should not eat those fish because of higher contamination. The other groups (“One Meal a Week”, “Two meals a Month”, “One Meal a Month”, and “Six Meals a Year”) are advice for how often to eat fish.
Women of childbearing age, children, and people who regularly eat fish are particularly susceptible to contaminants that build up over time. If you fall into one of these categories, you should be especially careful to follow the meal sizes and space fish meals out according to the advisory tables.
Your body can get rid of some contaminants over time. Spacing the meals out helps prevent the contaminants from building up to harmful levels in the body. For example, if the fish you eat is in the “One Meal a Month Group”, wait a month before eating another meal of fish from any restricted category. Occasionally eating fish in quantities slightly greater than the advisories recommend, such as during an annual fishing vacation, should not present a health hazard.Follow the advice presented in this advisory, noting the differences between the General and Specific Advisories for all West Virginia waters and the Ohio River Advisory.
Follow the advice presented in this advisory, noting the differences between the General Advisories for all West Virginia waters and the more restrictive Specific Advisories.
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General Advisories 2014 WV Statewide Consumption Advisories |
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Water Body
|
Species
|
Limit your fish meals to:
|
Contaminants
|
|
All Waters in West Virginia
except where listed in the
|
Hybrid Striped Bass
|
1 meal a month
|
Mercury
|
|
White Bass
|
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Black Bass |
2 meals a month
|
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Channel Catfish greater than 17”
|
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Flathead Catfish
|
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Rock Bass
|
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Walleye and Saugeye
|
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Sauger
|
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All Suckers
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Channel Catfish less than 17”
|
1 meal a week
|
||
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All Other Species
|
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Rainbow Trout
|
No Limit
|
||
More restrictive advisories issued in 2014 affect the following water bodies:
|
2014 WV Specific Consumption Advisories |
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|
Water Body
|
Species
|
Limit your fish meals to:
|
Contaminant(s)*
|
|
Bluestone River
|
Carp
|
1 meal a month
|
PCBs
|
|
Fish Creek
|
Smallmouth Bass, all sizes
|
1 meal a month
|
Mercury
|
|
Flat Fork Creek
|
Carp
|
Do not eat
|
PCBs
|
|
Channel Catfish, all sizes
|
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|
Suckers
|
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Kanawha River
downstream of I-64 bridge in Dunbar including all backwaters, Armour Creek,
Heizer Creek, Manila Creek, lower two miles Pocatalico River
|
Flathead Catfish, all sizes
|
Do not eat
|
Dioxin*
|
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Channel Catfish, all sizes
|
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Carp
|
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Hybrid Striped Bass
|
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Suckers
|
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All other species
|
1 meal a month
|
||
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Little Kanawha and
|
Sauger
|
1 meal a month
|
Mercury
|
|
Upper Mud and Mount Storm lakes, and Pinnacle Creek**
|
Follow Advisory Guidelines for WV Statewide Consumption.
|
Selenium
|
|
|
R.D. Bailey Lake |
Channel Catfish greater than 17” |
6 meals a year |
PCBs |
|
Shenandoah River
|
Carp |
Do not eat |
Mercury |
|
Smallmouth bass |
1 meal a month |
Mercury |
|
|
Summersville Lake
|
Flathead Catfish, all sizes
|
1 meal a month
|
Mercury
|
|
|
1 meal a monthh |
||
|
Sutton Lake
|
Black Bass, all sizes
|
1 meal a month
|
Mercury
|
|
Note: *Contaminant- Meal Limits are determined by the chemical with asterisk. Other chemicals, such as dioxin, (Hg)
methyl mercury may have an advisory at a less restrictive level.
**Measureable levels of selenium were detected in samples from the listed water
bodies. The levels measured would suggest advisories that are less restrictive
or consistent with the statewide consumption advice in place for mercury and
PCBs.
PCBs: Polychlorinated Biphenyls |
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|
2014 Ohio River Consumption Advisory |
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|
Ohio River Segmentt |
Species |
Limit your fish meals to: |
Contaminant(s)* |
|
Pennsylvania
Border (East
Liverpool) to
Belleville Lock (Brooke
Hancock, Marshall
Ohio, Pleasants
Tyler, Wetzel, Wood
Counties) |
Channel Catfish 18” and over |
Do Not Eat |
PCBs
|
|
Channel Catfish less than 18”,
Common Carp,
White Bass
|
6 meals a year |
||
|
Black Crappie
Flathead Catfish
Freshwater Drum 14”and over
Largemouth Bass
Sauger
Saugeye
Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouth Buffalo Spotted Bass
All Suckers
Walleye
White Crappie
|
1 meal a monthh |
||
|
Belleville Lock to the Kentucky Border (Cabell, Jackson Mason, Wayne Counties)
|
Channel Catfish 18” and over |
6 meals a year |
PCBs
|
|
Channel Catfish less than 18”
Common Carp
Flathead Catfish
Freshwater Drum 14” and over
Striped Bass
Striped Bass Hybrid
All Suckers
White Bass
|
1 meal a month |
||
|
Note:*Contaminant- Meal Limits are determined by the chemical with asterisk. Other chemicals, such as dioxin, (Hg)
methyl mercury may have an advisory at a less restrictive level.
PCBs: Polychlorinated Biphenyls |
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For further information or the most current advice consult the WV DHHR Web Site at www.wvdhhr.org/fish or call (304) 558-2771.
Other contacts:
- Consult the WV Division of Natural Resources Web Site at www.wvdnr.gov/fishing/fishing.shtm or call (304) 558-2771.
- Consult the US EPA Web Site at www.epa.gov/ost/fish