Oil Spills & Seafood Safety

OEHHA’s Oil Spill and Seafood Safety program is part of the Fish, Incident Response, Seafood Safety, and Harmful Algal Blooms (FISH) Section within the Pesticide and Environmental Toxicology Branch. 

This program:

• Evaluates the potential public health risks associated with eating seafood following oil spills into California waters (freshwater or marine).
  • Learn more about Potential Health Risks
  • See our Oil Spills and Seafood Fact Sheet English | Spanish for details on seafood testing, laboratory analyses, and risk evaluation
  • See our 1-page summary on this program (PDF) English | Spanish
• Works closely with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (CDFW) Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR).
• Makes recommendations for fisheries closure and re-opening actions to CDFW, as required by law.
  • Learn more about Fisheries Closure Process and Timelines

Potential Health Concerns

Potential public health risks associated with eating seafood following oil spills into California waters (freshwater or marine)

Fisheries Closures Process and Timeline

If, when, and how a fisheries closure occurs following an oil spill notification

Previous Fisheries Closures

Summary table of previous fisheries closures that required sampling

Technical Documentation

More technical information on risk assessment, sampling and analysis, and previous fisheries closure reports