EVER WONDER ABOUT potential health impacts from eating Dungeness crab and spot shrimp caught here on the North Olympic Peninsula?
Well, you can rest a little easier.
Dungeness crab and spot shrimp caught in the inside waters of the North Olympic Peninsula received a relatively clean bill of health in a new state Department of Health consumption advisory.
The health department based its advisory on a assessment Department of Fish and Wildlife staffers conducted of toxic contaminants in those species in Puget Sound and the East Strait of Juan de Fuca in 2011-12.
Persistent organic pollutants which included polychlorinated biphenyls, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and pesticides as well as six metals (mercury, arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc) were investigated.
Fish and wildlife determined the presence of contaminants in Dungeness crab meat and crab butter, as well as spot shrimp tails and head tissue.
The Department of Health then determined if those species were safe to eat in nine marine areas and three urban bays (Elliott and Commencement bays and Sinclair Inlet).
The evaluation of the information shows metal concentrations were evenly distributed in Dungeness crab from all marine areas and urban bays.
Mercury was the only metal detected at greater levels in crab from urban than non-urban areas.
Dungeness crab meat was found to be safe to eat at unrestricted amounts from all Puget Sound marine areas, except Marine Area 10 (Seattle/Bremerton).
The meat of crabs caught in Marine Area 6 (East Strait of Juan de Fuca), Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet) and Area 12 (Hood Canal) was deemed safe, except for Port Angeles Harbor.
Inside the harbor, crab meet consumption should be limited to four servings per month.
A serving is defined as 8 ounces of uncooked seafood for a 160-pound adult.
If you weigh more or less than 160 pounds, add or subtract an ounce for each 20-pound difference in body weight.
Crab butter lovers need to limit themselves.
Four servings per month in the Eastern Strait is the guideline, with an exception to avoid eating crab butter altogether from crabs caught in Port Angeles Harbor.
The guideline is two crab butter servings per month in Admiralty Inlet and Hood Canal.
A higher contaminant concentration was found in crab butter than in meat.
Guidance for eating crab butter is more restrictive because of those higher levels.
Spot shrimp meat consumption was deemed to be safe at an unrestricted level in Marine Areas 6, 9 and 12.
Eating spot shrimp heads was found to be acceptable on eight-serving-per-month-basis in the Eastern Strait and the Hood Canal.
But spot shrimp heads should not be eaten in Admiralty Inlet.
So, the verdict effectively is in. Take care to follow those guidelines and keep digging in on those delicacies of the sea.
The full advisory is available at tinyurl.com/PDN-CrabShrimp16.
Take it day by day
Fish and Wildlife is taking a day-by-day approach to hatchery-selective chinook catch rates in Marine Area 9, according to recreational salmon manager Ryan Lathrop.
Lothrop told The Seattle Times the hope is to get through the weekend.
Through Sunday, anglers had caught 2,284 of the 3,056-chinook catch quota.
Lothrop said the department will reevaluate totals catch totals again today.
Community paddle
A community paddle for kayakers, canoers and standup paddleboarders will be held tonight at 6 p.m. at the Irondale County Beach/Chimacum Creek tidelands.
Red Eft Adventures, a new standup paddleboard rental, lesson, and tour company based in Port Hadlock, will host the free event.
It’s geared toward anybody who wants to enjoy an evening out on the water.
The weather forecast is perfect, sunny and near 70 degrees.
Paddlers should bring a life jacket.
Red Eft Adventures will have standup paddleboards and other equipment on site for rental.
Paddlers could even try their luck at dipping a crab pot.
A good article on crabbing from a standup paddleboard appeared in Standup Journal at tinyurl.com/paddlecrab.
Swap out the references to Canadian license regulations and inch limits for Fish and Wildlife regulations and paddlers will be golden.
And they may come home with enough crab for a weekend feast.
For more information, visit redeftadventures.com.
Still cool at the lake
With more summer-like temperatures coming to the area it may be a better bet just to go swimming at Lake Leland than try and fish the lake for trout, bass or assorted other finned friends.
But don’t put the trout pole away just yet, according to Ward Norden, owner of Snapper Tackle Company, and a Quilcene resident.
“This is a remarkable summer so far,” Norden said.
He checked Lake Leland’s temperature last week and found it was 65 degrees.
“This is the coolest July water temperature I have seen in at least 20 years,” Norden said.
“As a result, trout fishing remains pretty good in most of Jefferson County’s lakes as long as you fish in early mornings and the meat on the trout is still firm, not mushy from warm water.”
The cooler summer also should help keep salmon cool as they arrive in area rivers and streams.
“I also checked the water temperature in the Big Quilcene River and it, too, is still cool at 56 degrees, which is near perfect for the arriving summer coho,” Norden said.
“Already many are at the hatchery in fine condition, so the future eggs will be vital. Very nice.”
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Outdoors columnist Michael Carman appears here Thursdays and Fridays. He can be reached at 360-452.-2.345, ext. 57050 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
