Have fish, will eat?

A new state study suggests that most of Louisiana’s fishermen are well aware of advisories and warnings that sometimes caution against eating wild-caught fish, but it does very little to change their consumption patterns. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ socioeconomic research section completed the survey last year and questions were posed to every type of recreational fishing license holder. The goal of the 2008 Louisiana Recreational Fisherman and Health Advisory Survey Report was to determine whether anglers were still eating their catches last year even if they were advised not to do so. Fish consumption advisories are usually issued by the state Department of Health and Hospitals, although LDWF and Department of Environmental Quality can play a role in such warning as well. State officials only issue these advisories for certain water bodies and fish species when there are concerns about the potential health risks or seafood that might contain toxic materials like mercury or organic pollutants. While fish warnings may sound familiar and you have might even heed them, the new study released this week found that only 58% of the fishermen polled knew they existed. That’s despite major outreach efforts in newspapers and magazines and on radio and television, which topped the ways informed fishermen became aware of the warnings last year. Recreational fishermen who responded to the survey reported that they consumed fish an average of about four times per month in 2008, and only three out of 10 respondents reported they changed their fish eating habits as a result of the fish consumption warnings. Other findings from the study: Approximately 42% of survey respondents fished in freshwater only, while 21% fished in saltwater only. The remaining 37% of the respondents fished in both freshwater and saltwater areas. Excluding ponds, the three top favorite freshwater fishing spots listed by respondents were Toledo Bend, Atchafalaya Basin and Red River. The three top reported saltwater fishing spots were Grand Isle, Lake Pontchartrain and the Gulf of Mexico. The three most common self-caught fish species consumed by survey respondents were drum, speckled trout and catfish. A copy of the report can be down loaded from the LDWF website by clicking here. — Jeremy Alford