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State toxicologist: PCB levels in Utah Lake fish have fallen; channel catfish advisory may be removed pending more sampling
Summary
Utah Department of Environmental Quality toxicologist Jacob Ridgeway reported sharp declines in PCB concentrations in Utah Lake fish from recent surveys and said state health officials are "leaning" to remove the channel catfish advisory pending confirmation sampling; the advisory for common carp will likely remain due to data variability.
Jacob Ridgeway, a toxicologist with the Utah Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Quality, told the Utah Lake Authority on Jan. 14 that recent fish-tissue sampling shows substantial declines in polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations in several species, and that state health officials are considering changing the lake’s fish-consumption advisory.
Ridgeway summarized the advisory’s origins, noting state and federal surveys in the early 2000s led to a consumption advisory first issued around 2006 for common carp and channel catfish. "There is an existing fish consumption advisory for carp and channel catfish on Utah Lake," he said, and described how sampling by the Department of Natural Resources, lab analysis by DEQ, and health determinations by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) combine to set those advisories.
Why it matters: PCBs are long-lasting, human-made chemicals historically used in electrical equipment that tend to accumulate in fatty, benthic fish and in sediment. Health screening values for PCBs are based on federal toxicology guidance; Ridgeway noted the screening threshold has shifted slightly from about 20 parts per billion to about 18 parts per billion in recent years, a change tied to updated toxicity values.
What the new data show: Ridgeway said the newest survey (data collected in 2024–2025) shows large reductions compared with early surveys — roughly a 50% reduction in black bullhead, about an 87% reduction in channel catfish and about a 72% reduction in common carp. "Channel catfish, though, was found below the screening value," Ridgeway said, and he reported common carp remain borderline in average concentration.
Data confidence and follow-up: Ridgeway cautioned that variability in the common carp dataset reduces confidence in concluding that carp are below the screening value. He described instances of a singular high-PCB fish and a singular low-PCB fish within the samples and mentioned laboratory QA/QC complications. "We're following it up basically as we speak, through some funding to the Utah Lake Authority to look at 15 more common carp, as well as 15 more channel catfish," he said. Based on the available data the Department of Health and Human Services is "leaning towards removing the existing advisory on Utah Lake or channel catfish, again, pending that additional analysis," while remaining inclined to maintain the advisory for common carp for now.
Public-health framing: Ridgeway emphasized that advisories generally translate into meal-consumption limits that vary by population — pregnant people, women of childbearing age, children and the general adult population receive different recommended limits — rather than unilateral prohibitions. Any change to the advisory would be implemented as adjusted meal recommendations tied to those population groups.
Next steps: The state is funding additional targeted sampling through the Utah Lake Authority to reduce uncertainty. Ridgeway closed by inviting further questions and offering to provide more fish-tissue contaminant information to interested parties. The transcript records no formal vote or motion; the reported policy direction is contingent on the forthcoming confirmatory sampling and subsequent DHHS review.
