Great Lakes Article:

Ohio set to issue in March new fish eating advisories
PCBs, mercury levels in some species reason for concern
By Dale Dempsey
Dayton Daily News
12/18/03

DAYTON -- Fish consumption advisories in Ohio will be stricter when new warnings come out in March, the start of fishing season.

Since 1997, Great Lakes states have warned women of child-bearing age and children under the age of 6 not to eat more than one meal per week of sport fish caught in any body of water in the state because of high levels of mercury or polychlorinated biphenyls, chemicals that can accumulate in the body to health-harming levels.

That advice has been extended to everyone in general rules written this year.

The more restrictive rules are the result of persistent PCB and mercury contamination of Ohio waters, caused mainly by coal-fired power plants, and better fish monitoring by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

The fish advisories are issued jointly by the Ohio EPA, Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Ohio Department of Health.

Two area waterways are on the state's "do not eat" list because of PCB contamination:

Dicks Creek, which flows through Middletown to the Great Miami River, for all species of fish.

The lowhead dam on the Great Miami River at Monument Avenue, a popular fishing spot.

Other area waters raise the consumption advisory to no more than one meal a month for certain fish.

Eastwood Lake, another popular fishing spot, is listed as limiting eating common carp to once a month because of PCBs. Carp, bass and channel catfish also are limited to once a month on the Great Miami, Mad and Stillwater rivers because of mercury.

There also is a once-a-month advisory for sauger caught in the Little Miami because of mercury limits.