Freshwater fish caught in the USA’s popular Great Lakes region could present a bigger health risk to consumers than highly contaminated water, new analysis has found.
A study of federal data suggests wild-caught freshwater fish, including bass, catfish and salmon, contain more toxic PFAs than ocean catches, with fish sourced from the country’s Great Lakes containing the highest level of ‘forever chemicals’.
The Great Lakes are a popular tourist destination for fishing enthusiasts, with many destinations offering fly-fishing and hunting tours for foreign visitors.
Now, the USA’s public health advocate, the Environmental Working Group (EWG), has warned that eating just one serving of US freshwater fish containing median PFA levels could prove as toxic as drinking highly contaminated water every day for a month.
Scott Faber, senior vice-president for government affairs at the EWG, said the findings were nothing short of “breathtaking”.
PFAS are a class of roughly 12,000 chemical compounds, including PFOS, which are used to make products resist water, stains and heat. They have been widely described as ‘forever chemicals’ because they do not break down naturally in the environment, and in recent years have been linked to a host of health conditions, including cancer, liver and kidney disease and foetal illness.
The EWG’s peer-reviewed study analysed data from a series of studies carried out since 2013 by both the USA’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It found that all but one of 501 samples checked were positive for elevated PFA levels. Wild-caught fish generally contained higher levels than farmed, with wild produce from the Great Lakes topping the table.
“Widespread PFAs contamination of freshwater fish in the US is likely a significant source of exposure to PFOs and potentially other [PFAs] for all persons,” the study’s authors concluded, “especially for high frequency freshwater fish consumers.”
The findings present a particularly high risk to the country’s fishing communities, including low income families and those who fish for cultural purposes as well as visitors drawn to the region specifically for fishing. Despite this, neither the EPA or FDA have warned consumers against eating wild caught fish.
David Andrews, one of the study’s co-authors, said the situation is “frustrating because there’s no clear solution” other than preventing the pollution of lakes and rivers. Bodies of water which don’t regularly experience a complete turnover of water could be contaminated for decades, he warned.
“I don’t want to tell people not to fish because I love fishing, but I would recommend, if at all possible, to avoid consuming freshwater fish unless you have clear information that it’s not contaminated, because this study indicates nationwide contamination of freshwater fish,” he concluded.