Georgetown Lake

[Midge4u2]

I really enjoy IF on GT. I was talking to a local and said that they would never eat any fish out of the lake. Saying that when mining was big in the area, mining waste was put into the lake... I've eaten fish in GT lake.. has anyone ever heard of this?

[iceotter88]

The entire lake is surrounded by several old mining districts. The majority of those operations quit running by the mid-19th century. Although waste was never dumped directly in the lake waste water did make it's way into the lake through adjacent drainages. There is an advisory icon in the current regulations regarding consumption of fish from that lake. Many people do eat fish from the lake.

[albo]

Montana FWP maintains a fish consumption advisory list and there are a lot of water bodies where consumption should be limited and they even list size restrictions as large predator fish will have higher levels of mercury etc.

[mountainjigger]

I have been smoking and pressure canning the koke's and a few bows out of Georgetown. The fat separates when pressure canned and can be poured off once it's time to eat. I've herd the heavy metals collect in the fat so hopefully this leaves the meat a little less toxic. I mix it with mayo or cream cheese and it is delicious! I also let the big trout go, only wack the smaller ones and salmon.

[missoulafish]

Significant amount of heavy metals also accumulate in muscle tissue...

[pmmpete]

The Montana fish consumption guidelines, which are available at http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0ahUKEwiqsq-H_tLYAhVCzWMKHeuYCiEQFggpMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffwp.mt.gov%2FfwpDoc.html%3Fid%3D28187&usg=AOvVaw1injDd45O-vQBizJwkktNT, say that kokanee up to 14 inches and brook trout up to 18 inches are safe to eat.  In my experience, you don't need to worry about catching kokanee bigger than 14 inches in Georgetown Lake.  So, chow down.

The fish you particularly need to worry about are big fish which eat other fish, such as pike, lake trout, and walleye, because they concentrate toxins from the fish which they eat, and they tend to live a long time.

[missoulafish]

That pike guideline is really interesting...

[icefishmissoula]

With respect to mercury consumptions here is a very interesting article.

https://www.nutraingredients.com/Article/2017/11/09/Benefits-of-moderate-fish-consumption-in-pregnancy-may-outweigh-mercury-effects-suggests-study