NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A precautionary warning to East Tennessee fishers now includes the entire Cherokee Reservoir.
TDEC announced the new advisory Wednesday, warning people to be cautious of mercury levels in the fish they catch. It expands on a 2007 advisory that included only part of the reservoir.
This is a "precautionary advisory," meaning that children and pregnant or nursing mothers shouldn't eat fish species included in the advisory. It also means no one should eat fish from the same affected area more than once a month. TDEC said mercury levels in affected fish species could exceed 0.3 milligrams per kilogram.
The advisory on the Cherokee Reservoir includes black bass species (such as smallmouth, largemouth and spotted bass) and catfish.
The 2007 advisory still stands, TDEC said. It includes all fish species in a portion of the Holston River. That portion extends from the Poor Valley Creek Embayment on Cherokee Reservoir to the confluence (junction of two rivers) of the North Holston River near Kingsport.
TDEC said other recreational activities such as boating, swimming, wading, and catch and release fishing carry no risk.
"We provide these advisories so the community can make informed decisions about whether or not to consume the fish they catch,” TDEC Deputy Commissioner Greg Young said.
Young said precautionary advisories are different from "do not consume," advisories, because precautionary advisories only apply to sensitive groups.
TDEC considers there to be two plausible sources of mercury in the Holston River and Cherokee Reservoir. According to the EPA, atmospheric deposition due to the global burning of coal is the most frequent reason for elevated levels of mercury in fish.
RELATED: What's in Melton Hill Lake?
RELATED: What's in Tellico Lake?
RELATED: What's in Fort Loudoun Lake?
Additionally, significant amounts of mercury were lost during the 1960s and 1970s at the Olin Chlor Alkali plant in Saltville, Virginia. TDEC said this site discharged to the North Fork Holston River, a tributary to the Holston near Kingsport.
TDEC has announced precautionary advisories for parts of each of these East Tennessee bodies of water. To see which parts and which fish species are affected, go to this tn.gov pamphlet and scroll to "East Tennessee."
- Abrams Creek
- Boone Reservoir
- Chattanooga Creek
- Cherokee Reservoir
- East Fork of Poplar Creek including Poplar Creek embayment and Bear Creek
- Emory River
- Fort Loudoun Reservoir
- French Broad River
- Hiwassee River
- Holston River
- Little River
- Melton Hill Reservoir
- Nickajack Reservoir
- Nolichucky River
- Norris Reservoir
- North Fork Holston River
- Pigeon River
- Sequatchie River
- South Holston Reservoir
- Tellico Reservoir
- Watauga Reservoir
- Watts Bar Reservoir