The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) will resume trout stocking in the Wissahickon Creek basin this spring after canceling the program in October, officials announced at a Nov. 5 meeting at The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education in Upper Roxborough.

This came as a relief to local anglers, many of whom have been fishing there every spring since childhood and plan to host an annual tournament at the creek in April.

“If you guys close that stream, and I know that’s not your intent, that would really cripple the Philadelphia area,” Chestnut Hill native Jim McClinton said at the meeting, which drew more than 60 attendees.

Experts discovered high levels of PFOS, a type of PFAS or “forever chemicals,” in fish tissue at Wissahickon Creek, prompting them in early October to issue a “do not eat” advisory for all fish species. Officials canceled the trout stocking set for Oct. 15 to allow them to spread the word about the advisory, said Kris Kuhn, director of the Bureau of Fisheries for PFBC, at the meeting. Officials had invited the public to the Schuylkill Center to explain the state’s fish consumption advisory program and gather input from anglers about trout management in the Wissahickon.

Spring and fall trout stocking will continue as normal next year but the “do not eat” advisory for all fish species will remain in effect for now, officials said. Experts with the state Department of Environmental Protection will continue monitoring the Wissahickon watershed for PFOS and will collect data this fall for the 2028 advisories.

“We’re here tonight not just to relay this information,” Kuhn said. “It’s certainly important that we engage with the local community here, and recognize that the Wissahickon and other stock trout waters in the southeast are very important recreational avenues to get out and fish and stock trout.”

The state’s trout stocking program is popular among residents, said Dave Nihart, PFBC’s chief of fisheries management. Seventy percent of surveyed anglers fish for trout and most of them fish for stocked trout. PFBC documented high angler use at the Wissahickon Creek a decade ago. In 2017, opening-day angler counts were in the 75th percentile for section two, which stems from Lafayette Avenue and downstream to Stenton Avenue. Counts were in the 95th percentile in 2016 for section four, an area that stretches from Germantown Pike to the junction of Forbidden and Lincoln drives.

Wissahickon Crick Anglers, a nonprofit organization that aims to improve trout fishing in the Wissahickon, offered to help state officials increase awareness about the advisory. The organization hosts a two-day trout fishing tournament every spring, attracting several hundred people a year. The organization fundraises for the event twice a year and orders fish from an outdoor hatchery. Officials at the meeting gave the organization the green light to host the tournament this spring.

Experts from PFBC and DEP have been sampling fish tissue for PFAS in various waterways since 2021 and have issued several advisories due to the chemicals, which have been linked to an increased risk of certain cancers, developmental effects and liver damage. DEP collected samples around Fort Washington State Park and found some that exceeded the “do not eat” advisory limit of 0.04 parts per million of PFOS.

The source of the contamination is unknown. Lisa Strobridge, external affairs manager for DEP, said at the meeting that DEP has been studying potential PFAS sources in the public water supply for the past several years.

Scientists found through a study at Middle Spring Creek last spring that the longer adult trout are stocked in PFAS-contaminated waters, the higher PFOS levels will appear in their tissue, PFBC’s chief of environmental services Heather Gahagan said at the meeting. However, stocked trout in the Wissahickon don’t survive long enough to become significantly contaminated — the water gets too warm, or they are killed by anglers or wildlife predators.

The state expects to see more unhealthy levels of PFAS in waterways, and fish consumption advisories, as experts continue tests, Mike Parker, communications director for PFBC, told the Local in a previous interview. A recent analysis released by PennEnvironment found PFAS in 96% of tested waterways in Pennsylvania, including the Wissahickon.

Officials say they will have to find more ways to offer recreational opportunities to anglers while protecting their health and safety. At the meeting, Nihart said officials considered removing trout stocking from the Wissahickon Creek basin. Another option was to resume trout stocking while instilling catch-and-release regulations.

The choice they landed on — resume trout stocking and inform the public more about consumption advisories — gives the state an “opportunity to educate the public on things that they need to consider if they’re choosing to harvest a fish from a water body that has a more restrictive consumption advisory,” Nihart said.

The PFBC is considering additional posting of consumption advisories through its website. One angler at the meeting suggested that the agency put an advisory notice on the site where anglers apply for fishing licenses.

Some attendees asked about volunteer or grant opportunities to help clean the water and manage pollution at Wissahickon Valley Park.

“We’re in the park every day cleaning up, and we would love to partner with you guys on that,” Sara Stevenson, executive director of Friends of the Wissahickon, said at the meeting.

Members of Wissahickon Crick Anglers are hoping to draw more young anglers to trout fishing, and the state’s stocking program is essential to that mission. A recent PFBC study found that fishing license sales have declined since the pandemic, and many buyers are older.

“We need this creek,” Erin Czech said at the meeting.

McClinton, a founding member of Wissahickon Crick Anglers, has been fishing in the Wissahickon for as long as he can remember and it’s an activity he shares with his sons. He said the meeting helped start a conversation about the various impacts pollution and climate change can have on local waterways.

“This problem is really deeper than fishing,” he said.

People with questions about the health effects from fish contaminants and various exposure scenarios can contact the state Department of Health at 717-787-3350 or dehe@pa.gov.