Ready Reference Files

Mussel Quarantine

Sport-harvesting of shellfish along the California coast is prohibited from May 1 through October 31. The state ordered quarantine applies to mussels, clams, cockles and scallops, and the reason is toxicity.

Paralytic shellfish poisoning, known as PSP, attacks the nervous system. It produces a tingling sensation around the mouth and fingertips within a few hours after ingesting the toxic shellfish. The shellfish are poisonous during this season because they consume an organism called gonyaulax catanella which proliferates between May and October, but is dormant the rest of the year. Between 1927 (when PSP was made a reportable condition) and 1988, 505 cases were recorded , 32 of which ended in death.

The California Department of Health Services operates a year-round shellfish monitoring program and a toll-free recorded message on current PSP information. If a problem appears outside the quarantine period, an alert is issued. Radio, TV and newspapers are notified and signs are posted at ocean accesses.

Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel. May 1, 1989.
Website of the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California Environmental Protection Agency, http://www.oehha.org/scientific/fish/broch.htm (visited 3/99).

Verified by: SY, 3/99

Disclaimer:
While the Library has verified the information presented in these files in what it considers to be reliable and authoritative sources, it cannot take responsibility for nor guarantee the accuracy of the information presented.