CONCORD (AP) – New Hampshire’s Department of Environmental Services on Monday placed more restrictive fish consumption limits for all fish caught in Squam Lake as a result of high levels of contaminants found in fish tissue samples.

The agency collected smallmouth bass and yellow perch samples, which were analyzed for PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, and other contaminants. Only PCB data is available at this time. The agency concluded that PCB concentrations in fish are high enough to present risks from exposure and their consumption should be limited.

The department said for smallmouth bass, adults and children over age 7 are limited to three, 8-ounce servings a year, or one meal every four months, with smaller servings and fewer meals for women of childbearing age and children younger than 7. For yellow perch, one 8-ounce meal every month was recommended for adults and children over age 7, with smaller servings and fewer meals for the other groups.

PCBs are man-made chemicals used as coolants and lubricants in electrical equipment because they don’t burn easily and are good insulators. The manufacture of PCBs was stopped in the U.S. in 1977 because of evidence that they build up in the environment.

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