TENNESSEE, USA — Fish caught in portions of Cumberland and Morgan counties may not be entirely safe to eat, officials from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation said.
The department is warning people about mercury found in some waterways. It extended a fish consumption advisory to an additional 6.7 miles of the Emory River in Morgan County.
The department also announced a new advisory due to elevated mercury levels of smallmouth bass found in parts of Daddy's Creek, in Morgan and Cumberland Counties.
Officials also said they tested fish caught from the Obed River. Those fish did not have elevated levels of mercury, according to a press release.
“Unlike ‘do not consume’ advisories that warn the general population to avoid eating fish from a particular body of water altogether, precautionary fish consumption advisories are specifically directed to sensitive populations such as children, pregnant women, nursing mothers and those who may eat fish frequently from the same body of water," TDEC Deputy Commissioner Greg Young said in a press release.