County: Harris
Parameter: Legacy pollutants in fish tissue
River Basin: San Jacinto River
Segment: 1001, 1005
Background and Goals
In 2001, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS;
then known as TDH) issued a notice advising consumers to limit
their consumption of fish caught in the river. The advisory was
issued after the DSHS determined that there was an unacceptable
risk to human health due to elevated concentrations of
organochlorine pesticides, PCBs, and dioxin in fish tissue.
The advisory covered areas within two river segments:
- Segment 1001, San Jacinto River Tidal
The advisory applied to the portion of the segment below the U.S.
Highway 90 bridge.
- Segment 1005, Houston Ship Channel / San Jacinto River
Tidal
The advisory applied to the portion of the segment above the
Lynchburg Ferry crossing.
The 14 pesticides identified in the advisory are legacy
pollutants. Legacy pollutants are chemicals that have been banned
or severely restricted, but which persist in the environment.
Because of their slow rate of decomposition, legacy pollutants
frequently remain at elevated levels in the environment for many
years after their widespread use has ended. Their concentrations
gradually decline over time as a result of natural attenuation.
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Project Results
After studying the fish tissue data for the San Jacinto River
Tidal in more detail, representatives of both the TCEQ and the DSHS
agreed that none of the legacy pesticides were present in fish
tissue in concentrations that would pose a significant risk to
consumers. Therefore, the DSHS rescinded its advisory for
organochlorine pesticides in the two segments. The TCEQ withdrew
its draft Fourteen Total Maximum Daily Loads for Legacy
Pollutants in the San Jacinto River Tidal, and has ended the
project. The PCB and dioxin contamination in fish will be addressed
through other projects.
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For More Information
For further information regarding the project, please call Jason
Leifester, Project Manager, at 512/239-6457. Or e-mail us at tmdl@tceq.state.tx.us, and
reference the San Jacinto Legacy Pollutant project in the subject
line. See the the Web page for DSHS’s Seafood
and Aquatic Life Group 
for more information about fish-consumption
advisories and bans.
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