LANSING, Mich. (WZMQ) – The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has released its annual Eat Safe Fish Guide.
The pamphlet features a long list of local lakes and rivers, detailing annual samples of the amount of chemicals found in certain fish at each location. Each year, the MDHHS releases this updated information across five regions in the state, separated by county. While these are not rules, they are compiled to help guide people to make safer choices in the fish they eat.
“It’s really important to encourage fishing and encourage it safely,” said Program Manager, Karly Brown. “We want people to know everything that’s happening where they’re recreating, and about the fish they’re eating and feeding their families.”
As these guidelines have reoccurred through the department for over 50 years, finding chemicals like mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB’s) in local fish for decades, the amounts of chemicals found in fish are not expected to change drastically each year. However, since about 2014, contaminants like perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have become more prominent, spreading a higher risk around the state and more reason to continue these studies.
“As the need and as the science has changed, we’ve changed as a program to stay on top of it,” said Brown. “It’s really great to see how it’s changed to fit the publics needs, as well as the current industrial and environmental state here in Michigan.”
The Upper Peninsula Eat Safe Fish guide can be found on michigan.gov, and also includes detailed chemical backgrounds, serving sizes, and more.
