Fishermen have been warned not to eat fish from the Shenango River from the Pennyslania Departments of Agriculture, Environmental Protection (DEP), and Health (DOH) along with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

The advisory extends to all fish between the Shenango Lake Dam and the mouth of the Shenango River in New Castle.
 
The DEP is investigating possible sources of the PCB contamination.
 
"PCBs are a class of chemical compounds that are hazardous to the health of fish and humans, so anglers are strongly encouraged to avoid consuming any species of fish that are caught in this reach of the Shenango River," said PFBC Executive Director John Arway.

A "Do not eat" advisory was already in effect for muskellunge, carp, and channel catfish. The new advisory now includes all other game fish like smallmouth and largemouth bass, bluegill, and walleye.

"We are very concerned about the fate and effects of PCBs since they have an extremely long environmental half-life and will remain in the river for decades if not properly cleaned up and disposed of," said Arway.
 
PCBs have been shown to cause a wide range of adverse health effects and cancer, according to the DEP.
 
Tissue samples taken from fish found some levels of PCB to be more than 22 mg/kg in smallmouth bass, which is more than 10 times the "No consumption" advisory level of 1.9 mg/kg.
 
The Fish and Boat Commission will not stock trout in Shenango River Section 04 until further notice.
 
DEP has contacted the public water suppliers that withdraw water from this area of the river.

These water suppliers have been conducting annual monitoring for PCBs. Samples from earlier this year did not show any presence of PCBs in the water itself. 

These systems have agreed to increase the frequency of monitoring to quarterly to ensure ongoing compliance with the drinking water standards for PCBs.