ADPH issues 2009 fish consumption advisories

ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Posted: 7/15/2009

Concern about protecting the public from possible exposure to mercury from eating fish led to
the issuance of nine new fish consumption advisories for bodies of water in Alabama in the
following counties: Barbour, Covington, Escambia, Greene, Russell and Shelby. Advisories for
three other bodies of water also were modified.

All advisories previously issued using Food and Drug Administration guidelines remain in effect
for 2009. The quality of water, based upon the levels of contaminants in fish from the waters in
Alabama, generally continues improvements made in recent years.

The Alabama Department of Public Health annually updates fish consumption advisories based
on data collected the preceding fall by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management.
ADEM collected samples of specific fish species from various bodies of water throughout the
state during the fall of 2008. ADPH assessed the analytical results to determine whether any of
the tested contaminants in the fish could give rise to potential human health effects.

Fish consumption advisories are issued for specific bodies of water and specific species taken
from those areas. In reservoirs, advisories apply to waters as far as a boat can be taken
upstream in a tributary, that is, to full pool elevations.

Beginning with the 2007 advisories, ADPH adopted a contaminant level for mercury in fish that
would protect those who might consider eating more than one fish meal per week. The new U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency standards are four times more protective than FDA levels
previously used. New advisories are issued in terms of the number of meals a particular fish can
safely be eaten in a given period of time, such as meals per week, meals per month or no
consumption. A meal portion consists of 6 ounces of cooked fish or 8 ounces of raw fish. Other
advisories have been updated to reflect the EPA consumption levels for mercury-contaminated
fish.

New consumption advisories were issued for the nine bodies of water, locations or species
described here.

New Advisories for 2009
Cowikee Creek – Barbour County
Cowikee Creek embayment of W. F. George Reservoir; approximate area from U.S. 431 bridge
to Chattahoochee River main channel; in vicinity of Lakepoint Resort and State Park
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gantt Reservoir – Covington County
Conecuh River, Gantt Reservoir, lake-wide sample
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – One meal per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point A Reservoir – Covington County
Conecuh River, Point A Reservoir, lake-wide sample
Largemouth bass
Contaminant –Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Patsaliga Creek - Covington County
Patsaliga Creek embayment of Point A Reservoir
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level - One meal per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burnt Corn Creek – Escambia County
Upstream of confluence with Murder Creek
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – One meal per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sipsey River – Greene County
Sipsey River Embayment, approximately 0.5 mi upstream of confluence with Tombigbee River
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Uchee Creek – Russell County
Uchee Creek vicinity of Uchee Recreational Area
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lay Reservoir – Shelby County
Approximately 1.5 mile downstream of U.S. Hwy 280 bridge; vicinity of river mile 444
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level - One meal per month
Striped bass
Contaminant – PCBs
Consumption level - Do not consume
Channel catfish
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, the following advisories have been modified based upon most recent sampling:
Fish River – Baldwin County
In vicinity of confluence with Polecat Creek approximately one mile upstream of County Road
32 bridge
Largemouth bass
One meal per 2 months
(1/2 meal per month)
Black crappie
Two meals per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Escatawpa River – Mobile County
At U.S. Highway 98 bridge crossing approximately one-tenth mile upstream of Alabama
/Mississippi line
Spotted bass, largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level - One meal per 2 months (or one-half meal per month) for spotted bass
One meal per month for largemouth bass
Blacktail redhorse
Contaminant – Mercury
One meal per month
Channel catfish
Contaminant – Mercury
One meal per month
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lewis Smith Reservoir - Winston County
Rock Creek, Lewis Smith Reservoir in vicinity of Little Crooked Creek and Rock Creek Marina,
approximately 5 miles upstream from Sipsey Fork
Largemouth bass
Contaminant – Mercury
Consumption level – Two meals per month
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fish from the following sites were analyzed and found to contain no contaminants at levels that
required posting of advisories. Fish from these bodies of water can be consumed with no
restrictions: Chattahoochee River (Houston County); Harding Reservoir and Osanippa and
Halawakee Creeks embayments of Harding Reservoir (Lee County); Perdido Bay (Baldwin
County); Sipsey River (Tuscaloosa County); W. F. George Reservoir (Henry and Barbour
counties); Barbour Creek embayment of W. F. George Reservoir (Barbour County); West Point
Reservoir (Troup County, Ga.), Flint Creek, (Morgan County); Wheeler Reservoir (Morgan and
Lawrence counties), and Bakers Creek embayment of Wheeler Reservoir in Morgan County.
Fish were analyzed for up to 30 different materials or types of materials, including contaminants
in the water (PCBs, including dioxins), pesticides (endosulfan, hexachlorobenzene, chlordane,
lindane, dieldrin, endrin, DDT and its breakdown products and congeners, heptachlors, Mirex,
chlorpyriphos and toxaphene), and heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, mercury and selenium) to
which the fish may have been exposed. In addition, fish were examined for body appearance,
lipid content, age and weight.

Fish are good indicators of the health of a body of water. Some contaminants can
bioaccumulate in fish. The contaminant could enter the food supply through either crustaceans
or bottom feeding fish in a given area. These species would be eaten by larger or more
aggressive species, thereby transferring the contaminant from the species consumed to the
larger species.

The advice contained in this release and complete listings of the posted fish consumption
advisories (http://www.adph

Member Comments…

---