New York State Health Department Issues "Don't Eat" Fish Advisory for Stretch of Hudson River

New Fish Consumption Advice Included for Adirondack Waters

ALBANY, N.Y. (March 1, 2016) -- The New York State Department of Health today issued a "Don't Eat" fish consumption advisory for walleye fish taken from Rondout Creek (downstream of Eddyville Dam), and the Hudson River (between the Rip Van Winkle Bridge at Catskill and the Tappan Zee Bridge). Rondout Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River. This advisory is more stringent than the previous advisory for this species, which recommended limiting intake of walleye to one meal per month. The current advisory is based on new data showing elevated levels of PCBs in these fish.

The Department issues consumption advisories for sportfish when the fish contain chemicals at levels that may pose health risks. The advisories, which are not regulations, tell people which fish to avoid, and how to reduce their exposure to contaminants in the fish they eat. This health advice is based on information that the Department of Environmental Conservation collects on contaminant levels in fish.

The new advice for Rondout Creek (downstream of the Eddyville Dam) and the Hudson River (between the Rip Van Winkle Bridge at Catskill and the Tappan Zee Bridge), based on PCB levels, is:

Rondout Creek and the Hudson River (Multiple counties)

  • Men over 15 and women over 50 - don't eat walleye. The previous advisory recommended limiting intake to 1 meal per month.

New advice has also been added for three Adirondack waters due to mercury levels in some of the fish:

Forked Lake (Hamilton County)

  • For men over 15 and women over 50 - limit intake of lake trout to 1 meal per month. The previous advisory recommended limiting intake to 4 meals per month.

Raquette Lake (Hamilton County)

  • For men over 15 and women over 50 - limit intake of lake trout to 1 meal per month. The previous advisory recommended limiting intake to 4 meals per month.

Lake Algonquin (Hamilton County)

  • For men over 15 and women over 50 - limit intake of chain pickerel greater than 20 inches to 1 meal per month, and limit intake for chain pickerel less than 20 inches to 4 meals per month.Limit intake of all other fish to 4 meals per month.
  • For women under 50 and children under 15 - don't eat fish from this body of water. The previous recommendation included not eating yellow perch over 10 inches, northern pike, pickerel, walleye, largemouth and smallmouth bass.

Updated advisory information is available on the Department of Health website at www.health.ny.gov/fish. Publications are currently being updated for this fishing season, and may be ordered online, free of charge.