New York City Region Fish Advisories

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Advisory Tables

New York City Region Advice - Upper Bay, Rivers, and Kills

Waterbody 1 (County)	Fish	General Population	Sensitive Population	Chemicals of Concern
East River to Throgs Neck Bridge2,3 (Queens, New York, Kings, Bronx) Harlem River2,3 (New York, Bronx) Hudson River2,3 (New York, Bronx) Upper New York Bay, north of Verrazano Narrows Bridge2,3 (Kings, New York, Richmond)	Crab or lobster tomalley and cooking liquid 2	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium, PFAS
	American eel5, Channel catfish, Gizzard shad, White catfish	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs
	Blue crab meat	Up to 4 meals/month (six crabs per meal)	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Cadmium
	Atlantic needlefish, Bluefish, Carp, Goldfish, Rainbow smelt, Striped bass, White perch	Up to 1 meal/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs
	All other fish	Up to 4 meals/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs
Raritan Bay, west of Wolfe's Pond Park2,3 (Richmond)	Crab or lobster tomalley and cooking liquid 2	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium, PFAS
	Blue crab meat	Up to 4 meals/month (six crabs per meal)	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium
	Atlantic needlefish, Bluefish, Rainbow smelt, Striped bass	Up to 1 meal/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin
	American eel, Gizzard shad, White perch	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin
	All other fish	Up to 4 meals/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin
Arthur Kill2,3 (Richmond) Kill Van Kull2,3 (Richmond) Newark Bay2,3 (Richmond)	Crab or lobster tomalley and cooking liquid 2	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium, PFAS
	Blue crab meat	Up to 4 meals/month (six crabs per meal)	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium
	Atlantic needlefish, Bluefish, Rainbow smelt	Up to 1 meal/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin
	American eel, Gizzard shad, Striped bass, White perch	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin
	All other fish	Up to 4 meals/month	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin

The sensitive population refers to people who may bear children under the age of 50 and children under 15. The general population refers to everyone else.

¹  The specific health advisories for the waters listed above also apply to tributaries (for example, Gowanus Canal and Newtown Creek) and connected waters if there are no dams, falls, or barriers to stop the fish from moving upstream.

²  DON'T EAT the soft "green stuff" (mustard, tomalley, liver, or hepatopancreas) found in the body section of crabs and lobsters from any waters because cadmium, PCBs, and other contaminants concentrate there. As contaminants are transferred to cooking liquid, you should also discard crab or lobster cooking liquid.

³  Check the NYS DEC website for updated marine regulations and special restrictions for certain species. Please note that all fresh water bodies in New York City parks are catch and release only and are not regularly monitored for contaminants. For more information visit: NYC regulations.

⁴  The advice for Paerdegat Basin was issued in response to a spill that led to discharges of PCB- containing material into the Basin. An environmental investigation is underway to determine if there is residual contamination in the Basin. Please check www.health.ny.gov/fish to see whether this advice is still in effect. The public is also reminded that all New York City waters are closed to shellfishing (harvesting of clams, mussels, oysters or scallops).

⁵  No eels may be possessed for food in the East, Harlem, and tidal Hudson Rivers. Visit the NYS DEC Marine Regulations website for updated regulations and special restrictions for certain species.

New York City Region Advice - Lower Bay, Sound, and Ocean

Waterbody 1 (County)	Fish	General Population	Sensitive Population	Chemicals of Concern
Atlantic Ocean2,3 (Nassau, Queens, Suffolk) Jamaica Bay, excluding Paerdegat Basin2,3 (Nassau, Queens, Kings) Long Island Sound2,3 (Nassau, Westchester, Queens, Suffolk, Bronx) Lower New York Bay, south of Verrazano Narrows Bridge2,3 (Kings, Richmond) Raritan Bay, east of Wolfe's Pond Park2,3 (Richmond)	Weakfish	Greater than 25", up to 1 meal/month; Less than 25", up to 4 meals/month	Greater than 25", DON'T EAT; Less than 25", up to 1 meal/month	PCBs
	Crab or lobster tomalley and cooking liquid 2	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs, Dioxin, Cadmium, PFAS
	American eel, Bluefish, Striped bass	Up to 4 meals/month	Up to 1 meal/month	PCBs
	All other fish and crabs	Follow the FDA guidelines.
Paerdegat Basin (and 200 yards from its mouth) in Jamaica Bay2,3,4 (Kings)	All fish, All crabs	DON'T EAT	DON'T EAT	PCBs

The sensitive population refers to people who may bear children under the age of 50 and children under 15. The general population refers to everyone else.

¹  The specific health advisories for the waters listed above also apply to tributaries (for example, Gowanus Canal and Newtown Creek) and connected waters if there are no dams, falls, or barriers to stop the fish from moving upstream.

²  DON'T EAT the soft "green stuff" (mustard, tomalley, liver, or hepatopancreas) found in the body section of crabs and lobsters from any waters because cadmium, PCBs, and other contaminants concentrate there. As contaminants are transferred to cooking liquid, you should also discard crab or lobster cooking liquid.

³  Check the NYS DEC website for updated marine regulations and special restrictions for certain species. Please note that all fresh water bodies in New York City parks are catch and release only and are not regularly monitored for contaminants. For more information visit: NYC regulations.

⁴  The advice for Paerdegat Basin was issued in response to a spill that led to discharges of PCB- containing material into the Basin. An environmental investigation is underway to determine if there is residual contamination in the Basin. Please check www.health.ny.gov/fish to see whether this advice is still in effect. The public is also reminded that all New York City waters are closed to shellfishing (harvesting of clams, mussels, oysters or scallops).

Advisory Waters Map

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