Publication Details
Fish consumption risk perception among anglers in an industrial urban area
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Year Published
2010
Publication
In: Watts, Clifton E., Jr.; Fisher, Cherie LeBlanc, eds. Proceedings of the 2009 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-66. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 48-56.
Abstract
Over two summers, we conducted field interviews with anglers in the industrial Calumet Region of northwest Indiana and southeast Chicago. The data collected provide insight into how anglers assess the risks of eating the fish they catch. Some anglers practiced catch and release because of concerns about water pollution while others just did not eat fish. Those who ate fish they caught expressed a range of beliefs (some accurate, some not) about detecting pollution, choosing "safe" fishing spots, and removing pollution from fish. There was widespread uncertainty about how people can know what is safe or unsafe to eat (both fish and other foods). Almost no one had read official state-issued fishing guidebooks yet some were familiar with information available in the guidebooks. In light of these findings, we consider the many challenges of conveying accurate fish consumption risk information to a diverse urban fishing population.
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Citation
Fisher, Cherie LeBlanc; Westphal, Lynne M.; Longoni, Mario. 2010. Fish consumption risk perception among anglers in an industrial urban area. In: Watts, Clifton E., Jr.; Fisher, Cherie LeBlanc, eds. Proceedings of the 2009 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-66. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 48-56.