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IDPH Issues Updated Sport Fish Consumption
Advisories
“Do Not Eat” advisory issued for Franklin
Creek in Lee County as statewide testing for PFAS is implemented
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[April 09, 2024]
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH)
has issued its updated consumption advisories for sport fish caught
in Illinois waters. The advisories are based on routine testing
conducted by the Illinois Fish Contaminant Monitoring Program, which
was updated last fall to include testing for per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), sometimes referred to as “forever
chemicals.” |
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 The
expanded testing has this year resulted in advisories for nine
bodies of water this year. A Do Not Eat advisory has been issued for
all fish in Franklin Creek in Lee County, and associated ponds in
the Franklin Creek State Natural Area, due to high levels of PFAS.
The updated advisories also recommend limited consumption of certain
fish from several other Illinois waterways because of PFAS levels.
Certain fish taken from Lake Zurich, Crab Orchard Lake, and Wolf
Lake should only be consumed once per month. One meal per week
advisories were issued for certain species in Lake Michigan,
Waukegan North Harbor, Sycamore Lake, Midlothian Reservoir, and
Chicago River. More information about PFAS can be found in the
Illinois
PFAS Advisories Fact Sheet.
“Fishing in Illinois waters is a great recreational activity that
often leads to delicious meals,” said IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra.
“To make sure each of those catches are safe and healthy, please
visit our Fish Advisory Map to get the most up to date information
on Illinois’s consumption advisories.” In
addition to PFAS, the fish consumption advisories also address the
presence of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) and methylmercury. As
part of a continuing trend of declining PCB levels around the state,
PCB advisories were relaxed for certain species in Lake Michigan and
Midlothian Reservoir, and removed for certain species in Lake
Michigan, Crab Orchard Lake, Midlothian Reservoir, Sangamon River,
and Illinois River. [to top of second
column] |
IDPH issued more restrictive
methylmercury advisories for certain species in the Ohio River
and the Little Wabash River watershed. Site-specific advisories
were removed from Midlothian Reservoir and Lake Zurich.
In addition to this year’s site-specific updates, a statewide
methylmercury advisory remains in place for all Illinois waters.
The advisory cautions those who are nursing, pregnant, or may
become pregnant, and children less than 15 years of age to eat
no more than one meal per week of predatory fish (e.g., bass,
walleye, salmon).
IDPH maintains an interactive Fish Advisory Map that includes
consumption advisories for more than 100 publicly accessible
bodies of water across the state. While there is no known
immediate health hazard from eating contaminated fish from any
Illinois water body, there are concerns about effects of
long-term exposure to PCBs, PFAS, and methylmercury in fish.
More information can be found at Fish Advisories (illinois.gov).
[Illinois Office of Communication and
Information] |
