The Wisconsin DNR and the Department of Health Services have published a booklet which outlines consumption guidelines for fish caught from Wisconsin waters, and fish caught in Sheboygan County waters aren’t given carte blanche approval for everyone due to contaminants that can build up in their flesh. Of primary concern are PCBs, mercury, and PFOS, a type of PFAS also known as “forever chemicals”
A searchable database lists advisories for Big Elkhart Lake, Lake Michigan and its tributaries up to the first dam, and the Sheboygan River from Sheboygan Falls to the mouth at Lake Michigan.
A quick look into the Elkhart Lake data, for instance, advises that women of child bearing age and children under 15 years old can safely eat 1 meal per week of common panfish, bullheads, trout and yellow perch and 1 meal per month of bass, catfish, pike and all other species and sizes, while muskies, and walleye larger than 19” are on their Do Not Eat list. Men have fewer restrictions, and the main concern is due to mercury.
Those interested should check that database before eating any fish caught in county waters.
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