TY - JOUR
T1 - Understanding the relationships between water quality, recreational fishing practices, and human health in Phoenix, Arizona
AU - Pulford, E.
AU - Polidoro, Beth
AU - Nation, M.
N1 - Funding Information:
Dr. Marcia Nation's work on this study was supported by the National Science Foundation under grant number DEB-1026865, Central Arizona-Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2017/9/1
Y1 - 2017/9/1
N2 - Across the United States, recreational freshwater fisheries are not only an important leisure activity, but can also provide a relatively inexpensive source of protein in local diets. However, recreational freshwater fisheries are generally not well-monitored in terms of fish consumption vs. catch and release, nor are all recreational surface waters regularly monitored for the presence of potentially harmful contaminants in water or fishes. In six urban lakes that support recreational fisheries in Phoenix, Arizona, a majority of surveyed anglers reported eating recreationally caught fishes, even though they thought the water might be polluted. Surface water samples collected from the six urban recreational fishery lakes showed varying levels of organic contaminants, including pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and phthalates. As many Phoenix urban recreational fisheries lakes and ponds are located in low income and high minority neighborhoods, the results of this pilot study could be used to inform urban fisheries management and other agencies of the potential need for fish consumption advisories, inform actions to improve water quality in urban lakes and ponds that support urban fisheries, and support further research and monitoring, in order to reduce potential risks to public health.
AB - Across the United States, recreational freshwater fisheries are not only an important leisure activity, but can also provide a relatively inexpensive source of protein in local diets. However, recreational freshwater fisheries are generally not well-monitored in terms of fish consumption vs. catch and release, nor are all recreational surface waters regularly monitored for the presence of potentially harmful contaminants in water or fishes. In six urban lakes that support recreational fisheries in Phoenix, Arizona, a majority of surveyed anglers reported eating recreationally caught fishes, even though they thought the water might be polluted. Surface water samples collected from the six urban recreational fishery lakes showed varying levels of organic contaminants, including pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and phthalates. As many Phoenix urban recreational fisheries lakes and ponds are located in low income and high minority neighborhoods, the results of this pilot study could be used to inform urban fisheries management and other agencies of the potential need for fish consumption advisories, inform actions to improve water quality in urban lakes and ponds that support urban fisheries, and support further research and monitoring, in order to reduce potential risks to public health.
KW - Environmental justice
KW - Human health
KW - Local governance
KW - Recreational fishing
KW - Sustainability
KW - Urban water quality
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.05.046
DO - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.05.046
M3 - Article
C2 - 28549275
AN - SCOPUS:85019626069
SN - 0301-4797
VL - 199
SP - 242
EP - 250
JO - Journal of Environmental Management
JF - Journal of Environmental Management
ER -