California Mussel Quarantine: A Silent Killer Lurks in the Coastal Waters
California Mussel Quarantine: A Silent Killer Lurks in the Coastal Waters California’s coastline, a breathtaking landscape, holds a hidden danger this season: toxic mussels. A six-month quarantine, issued annually by the state Department of Public Health and effective until October 31st, warns against consuming any wild-harvested mussels along the entire West Coast. The culprit? Naturally occurring biotoxins within the mussels, accumulating from harmful algal blooms. These blooms, unpredictable and rapidly intensifying, produce toxins causing paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) and amnesic…