Do Not Eat Deer From Near Clark’s Marsh In Northern MI, Officials Warn

IOSCO COUNTY, MI — Michigan health officials are warning hunters not to eat venison from deer killed within three miles of Clark’s Marsh in Oscoda Township because of ongoing PFAS pollution.

Officials believe deer from that area are contaminated with various harmful polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), which reside in the animals' liver and muscle tissues, according to a 2021 report.

PFAS and PFOS are often called "forever chemicals" because they don’t degrade in the environment or in the bodies of people exposed to them. They are associated with several negative health effects, such as liver damage, high cholesterol and reduced fertility, according to health officials.

The advisory was first issued in 2018, and then renewed in both 2019 and 2021. The latest update reduced the advisory zone from a five-mile to a three-mile radius around Clark’s Marsh.

In addition, there is still a Do Not Eat advisory for all fish and aquatic or semi-aquatic wildlife taken from Clark’s Marsh. The advisory includes fish, aquatic and semi-aquatic mammals (including muskrats), amphibians (including frogs), mollusks (including snails), reptiles (including turtles) and arthropods (including crayfish).

There are three separate health advisories currently in effect for Clark’s Marsh:

• A Do Not Eat fish advisory in effect since 2012.
• A Do Not Eat deer advisory issued in 2018, updated in 2019 and again in 2021.The 2021 update shrank the five-mile advisory area to a three-mile advisory area.
• A Do Not Eat resident aquatic and semi-aquatic wildlife advisory in effect since 2019.