Since at least the week of Aug. 15 an advisory has been in effect for toxic shellfish sampled across various beaches around Kodiak. Then on Friday, Oct. 10, Kodiak Area Native Association’s Environmental team sent an email lifting their advisory for all shellfish species.
KANA is not a regulatory agency and the consumption of wild shellfish in Alaska is considered ‘eat at your own risk’.
For the past two consecutive months, the organization has found elevated toxin levels in shellfish like blue mussels at public sites such as Mission Beach and White Sands beach. KANA has been sampling shellfish from at least three different sites every week and monitoring for the toxins that cause Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning or PSP.
When the toxins in shellfish are above the Food and Drug Administration’s regulatory limit of 80 micrograms per 100 grams, then the toxic shellfish can potentially cause PSP in humans who eat them.
Symptoms can include tingling in the lips and fingertips, numbing of the arms and legs, nausea, difficulty breathing and even death. Anyone with these symptoms should seek immediate medical care, or call 911 or their local clinic immediately.
Despite the toxin advisory being lifted, KANA still encourages shellfish harvesters around Kodiak to submit a sample of their shellfish to the organization for free testing through the harvest and hold program.
For more information and to see the latest toxin levels from last week’s sampled shellfish, go online to KANA Environmental’s website.
