LOS ANGELES, May 12 (Xinhua) -- Based on a decade-long study, California authorities warned Thursday that anglers should not eat some fish because they carry high levels of chemicals.
Barracuda, sand bass and other fish along Southern Californian coast have been found to be contaminated with toxic chemicals, according to the state Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA).
The finding is based on a decade-long study by state and federal agencies of 22 species of fish along 160 kilometers of Southern California coast, the agency said.
This is a renewed effort to emphasize that some fish carry high levels of chemical contamination, said the agency, which had previously set up warning signs at fishing sites after chemical contamination was detected in some fishes.
The OEHHA said it will put up new signs at the Santa Monica Pier and other popular fishing sites next week to warn anglers about consuming these fishes.
The 24 new signs, with graphics and warnings in English and Spanish, provide updated information on fish that should not be eaten, officials said.
The agency has been working with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to examine chemical contamination in fishes along the California coast.
"We need these new signs to let anglers know that there are five species of fish they would do well to avoid," said Carmen White, project manager at the EPA.
Old signs posted at piers were based on information from 1991, and only included warnings about white croaker, White said.
Children and women 45 years old and younger should not eat black croaker or Pacific barracuda caught along Ventura Harbor to San Mateo Point because of high levels of mercury, officials warned.
In addition to white croaker, anglers also should not eat barred sand bass and topsmelt, two new fish added to the advisories. These three fish have high levels of PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyls) and DDTs, White said. Editor: Zhang Xiang