Mercury in fish, bed sediment, and water from streams across the United States, 1998-2005

Abstract

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Mercury in fishes from Augusta Bay (southern Italy): Risk assessment and health implication

“…In particular, we assumed the length of fishes as a reliable parameter for age estimates (Boening, 2000;Waldron and Kerstan, 2001;Scudder et al, 2009;Panfili et al, 2010;Basilone et al, 2011;Bacha et al, 2012) and, thus, reported HgT values vs. length to assess biomagnification of that contaminant with time. Statistically reliable and robust correlations were found between HgT mean values measured in muscles for size classes and length in S. pilchardus (r 2 = 0.75), E. encrasicolus (r 2 = 0.92), Trachurus trachurus (r 2 = 0.96), Diplodus annularis (r 2 = 0.98) and P. erythrinus (r 2 = 0.64) (Fig.…”

Hydrology and Methylmercury Availability in Coastal Plain Streams

“…Much of the current understanding of the controls on MeHg production, transport to primary aquatic habitats, and subsequent uptake and accumulation in aquatic foodwebs of lakes and streams in North America is based on research conducted in peatland, wetlands, and organic-rich surface-water environments of Canada and the northeastern USA. In contrast, comparatively little is known about the fundamental controls on Hg bioaccumulation in the Coastal Plain region of the southeastern USA, despite the recognized pattern of elevated fish Hg concentrations Glover et al, 2010;Guentzel, 2009;Krabbenhoft et al, 1999;Scudder et al, 2009) in this geographically extensive physiographic region (Fenneman, 1928(Fenneman, , 1938Vigil, 2000). Consequently, the remainder of this chapter will focus on the role of hydrology as a control on MeHg availability in Coastal Plain stream settings.…”

“…A number of surface-water settings in North America are characterized by elevated levels of Hg bioaccumulation in fish Krabbenhoft et al, 1999;Scudder et al, 2009). Much of the current understanding of the factors contributing to elevated Hg bioaccumulation in aquatic habitats of North America is based on research conducted in the extensive peatland environments of Canada and in the organic-enriched surface waters of the northeastern USA, where Hg bioaccumulation in top predator fish and piscivorous bird species is well documented (Driscoll et al, 2007).…”

“…Much of the current understanding of the factors contributing to elevated Hg bioaccumulation in aquatic habitats of North America is based on research conducted in the extensive peatland environments of Canada and in the organic-enriched surface waters of the northeastern USA, where Hg bioaccumulation in top predator fish and piscivorous bird species is well documented (Driscoll et al, 2007). Recent studies have demonstrated that Coastal Plain stream environments also are particularly prone to elevated Hg concentrations in fish and other indigenous aquatic communities Bradley et al, 2011;Bradley et al, 2010;Glover et al, 2010;Guentzel, 2009;Scudder et al, 2009), but considerably less is known about the specific ecological interactions contributing to elevated Hg bioaccumulation in this physiographic setting. However, recent research indicates that the elevated Hg risk associated with Coastal Plain streams is inextricably linked to the hydrologic characteristics of the Coastal Plain physiographic region.…”

Where does your food come from?

“…The case of fish Often, the answer to that question is not a happy one, and recommendations on how to deal with it are contradictory. In waterways, atmospheric deposition of mercury emitted from the combustion of fossil fuels, particularly coal-fired power plants, has led to widespread mercury contamination of fish in some areas (2,3) . At the same time, interest in the potential health benefits from consuming fish and fish oils is increasing.…”