Harmful PCBs Found In Squam Lake Fish, Advisory Issued

CONCORD, NH — The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Sciences is warning residents to eat less fish from Squam Lake after their team found several fish there had high levels of PCBs. PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, are a carcinogen and have several other negative health effects.

After finding high levels of PCBs in over 50 sample fish, the NHDES is advising residents to limit their meals to:

• Seven years old or older: one meal every four months.
• Women of childbearing age: one meal every six months.
• Children under seven: one meal every year.

The advisory affects all fish with the exception of yellow perch, which researchers found to have less PCBs than the sampled smallmouth bass. The guidelines for eating perch are:

• Seven years old or older: one meal every month.
• Women of childbearing age: one meal every two months.
• Children under seven: one meal every three months.

These guidelines assume a roughly 8 oz. meal for adults and a 4 oz. meal for children, anything larger should be avoided. The guidelines do not affect catch-and-release fishers, as handling a fish with PCBs has no known side effects.

The department is also reminding everyone to stay aware of statewide mercury guidelines, which restrict the consumption of lake trout, salmon, hornpout, smallmouth bass and five other fish species native to Squam Lake. Under those guidelines, only fish smaller than 12 inches in length should be eaten.