Mercury in the Sudbury River (Massachusetts, U.S.A.): pollution history and a synthesis of recent research

Wiener, James G.; Shields, Pamela J.

doi:10.1139/cjfas-57-5-1053

Cited by 14 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Low‐lying floodplain areas along the creek were heavily contaminated by Hg discharges in the 1950s and 1960s, and a narrow strip of contaminated soil and stream bank lines the creek throughout the rest of its length. Unlike other streams where riparian wetlands can act as important sources of methylmercury 10, 11, the EFPC is not bordered by significant wetland areas. Mercury inputs to the upper EFPC from the facility are primarily dissolved Hg.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sources of mercury in a contaminated stream—implications for the timescale of recovery

Southworth

Mathews

Greeley

et al. 2013

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Abstract-Mercury contamination in East Fork Poplar Creek in Tennessee arises from dissolved mercury exiting a headwater industrial complex and residual mercury in the streambed and soil throughout the watershed downstream. The headwater inputs generate chronic base flow concentrations of total mercury of about 1,000 ng/L, but most of the annual export of mercury from the system appears to originate farther downstream. Effective targeting of remedial efforts requires determining how long downstream sources might continue to contaminate the system following elimination of the headwater mercury inputs. The authors calculations suggest that (1) contaminated soils and sediments account for >80% of the annual mercury export from the entire watershed, with most export occurring during wet weather events; (2) bank erosion and resuspension of streambed particulates are the major mercury sources maintaining high annual mercury export rates; and (3) the inventory of particle-associated mercury in the streambed was not large enough to sustain the estimated export rates for more than a few years. The authors findings imply that to prevent waterborne mercury contamination in this system from continuing for decades, remedial actions will have to control the headwater mercury source that sustains day-to-day base flow mercury concentrations and the riparian stream-bank sources that generate most of the mercury export from the system. Environ. Toxicol. Chem.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sources of mercury in a contaminated stream—implications for the timescale of recovery

Southworth

Mathews

Greeley

et al. 2013

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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“…Tree swallows were sampled from reference sites and from polluted sites associated with an ongoing United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigation of the impact of Hg contamination on the Sudbury River and surrounding areas from the Nyanza Superfund Site located in Ashland, MA (Wiener and Shields 2000). Sampling from contaminated sites occurred on the Sudbury River and in Heard Pond in the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge (Sudbury, MA) as well as two other contaminated areas, Reservoir 1 and Reservoir 2 (Ashland, MA).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The corticosterone stress response and mercury contamination in free-living tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor

et al. 2009

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We determined mercury concentrations in tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor, from Massachusetts and Maine with different levels of contamination. Baseline and stress-induced plasma corticosterone concentrations from adults and nestlings (Massachusetts only) were compared with mercury concentrations. In Massachusetts, adult baseline corticosterone was negatively correlated with blood mercury, but showed a nearly-significant positive correlation with feather mercury. There was a negative relationship between baseline corticosterone and blood mercury in nestlings and between baseline corticosterone and egg mercury. There was no relationship between mercury and stress-induced corticosterone in any of the groups, or with baseline corticosterone in Maine sites where mercury levels were lower. The findings suggest blood and egg mercury may be a better indicator of current condition than feather mercury. Further, mercury contamination may not alter stress-induced corticosterone concentrations in tree swallows but appears to have a significant impact on baseline circulating corticosterone.

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“…Freshwater mussels are currently one of the fastest declining faunal groups in North America and may be more susceptible to Hg pollution than other aquatic organisms. Mussel assemblages are often congregated in depositional zones [1], and these areas likely have higher Hg concentration because of its affinity for binding with fine particulate matter [2–4]. Several in situ studies have shown that bivalves have a propensity to bioaccumulate Hg [2,4], which may be caused by their close association with the water column‐sediment boundary and feeding behavior [5,6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mussel assemblages are often congregated in depositional zones [1], and these areas likely have higher Hg concentration because of its affinity for binding with fine particulate matter [2–4]. Several in situ studies have shown that bivalves have a propensity to bioaccumulate Hg [2,4], which may be caused by their close association with the water column‐sediment boundary and feeding behavior [5,6]. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) is currently reviewing the water quality criteria for Hg, but only limited toxicological data are available for many aquatic species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acute and chronic toxicity of mercury to early life stages of the rainbow mussel, Villosa iris (Bivalvia: Unionidae)

Valenti

Cherry

Neves

et al. 2005

Enviro Toxic and Chemistry

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Mercury (Hg) contamination is receiving increased attention globally because of human health and environmental concerns. Few laboratory studies have examined the toxicity of Hg on early life stages of freshwater mussels, despite evidence that glochidia and juvenile life stages are more sensitive to contaminants than adults. Three bioassays (72-h acute glochidia, 96-h acute juvenile, and 21-d chronic juvenile toxicity tests) were conducted by exposing Villosa iris to mercuric chloride salt (HgCl2). Glochidia were more sensitive to acute exposure than were juvenile mussels, as 24-, 48-, and 72-h median lethal concentration values (LC50) for glochidia were >107, 39, and 14 microg Hg/L, respectively. The 24-, 48-, 72-, and 96-h values for juveniles were 162, 135, 114, and 99 microg Hg/L, respectively. In the chronic test, juveniles exposed to Hg treatments > or = 8 microg/L grew significantly less than did control organisms. The substantial difference in juvenile test endpoints emphasizes the importance of assessing chronic exposure and sublethal effects. Overall, our study supports the use of glochidia as a surrogate life stage for juveniles in acute toxicity tests. However, as glochidia may be used only in short-term tests, it is imperative that an integrated approach be taken when assessing risk to freshwater mussels, as their unique life history is atypical of standard test organisms. Therefore, we strongly advocate the use of both glochidia and juvenile life stages for risk assessment.

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Mercury in the Sudbury River (Massachusetts, U.S.A.): pollution history and a synthesis of recent research

Cited by 14 publications

References 38 publications

Sources of mercury in a contaminated stream—implications for the timescale of recovery

Sources of mercury in a contaminated stream—implications for the timescale of recovery

The corticosterone stress response and mercury contamination in free-living tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor

Acute and chronic toxicity of mercury to early life stages of the rainbow mussel, Villosa iris (Bivalvia: Unionidae)

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