Site-wise Mercury Levels in Ulhas River Estuary and Thane Creek near Mumbai, India and its Relation to Water Parameters

Abstract

Ulhas river estuary (73°14′E, 19°14′N to 72°54′E, 19°17′N) and Thane creek (72°55′E, 19°N to 73°E, 19°15′N) near Mumbai, India are highly polluted owing to the heavy load of industrial pollutants and sewage discharge. The traditional fisher-folk living along the banks of Ulhas river estuary and Thane Creek rely on these contaminated fish for their daily sustenance, thereby being exposed to heavy mercury pollution for several years. However, little attention has been given to the levels of mercury in water, its intake and exposure to those populations. In the present study, mercury levels in the waters of Ulhas river estuary and Thane creek has been analysed and its relation with other physico-chemical parameters have been studied. Mercury level was maximum in Wehele station and Alimgarh station with an average of 8.57 ng/ml and minimum at Diwe-Kewni station with 2.6 ng/ml. Vittawa and Airoli stations along Thane creek showed moderate levels with an average of 5.71 ng/ml. The reference site, Khadavli had Hg below the level of detection in the water samples. Study on Hg levels in water showed proximity to the source of discharge to be the prime factor for its elevated levels. Mercury in water depicted positive correlations with temperature and BOD and negative correlations with pH, salinity, hardness and DO.DOI: 10.3126/on.v8i1.4325

Studies on Pollution Discharge Scenario of Effluents Released from Fine Chemicals Manufacturing Industries along Dombivali Industrial Belt of Mumbai, India

“…Under the group of heavy metals are Cr, Ni, Zn, Cu, Pb and Fe. They are classified under the group of heavy metals because in metallic form they have the densities higher than 4 g/cm 3 . The Cu content in the industrial effluent was found to be minimum of 0.68 ppm in the month of June and maximum of 45.94 ppm in the month of February.…”

“…High levels of pollutants in river/ creek /lake water systems causes an increase in biological oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), toxic metals such as Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb and fecal coliform and hence make such water unsuitable for drinking, irrigation and aquatic life [2][3][4][5][6][7].…”

Epidemiological study of clinical signs and symptoms of mercury poisoning in fish consumers residing in five villages along Thane Creek and Ulhas River Estuary near Mumbai, India

“…The Hg concentration in the fish was analyzed to be high in both Thane creek and Ulhas River Estuary, in comparison to the safety limits proposed by WHO (Menon and Mahajan, 2011). A study on the fish consumption pattern revealed that the traditional fishing communities residing in different villages along Ulhas River Estuary and Thane creek are highly dependent on the estuarine/creek fish for their dietary mainstay and consume large quantities of fish (Menon and Mahajan, 2013).…”

Studies on Water Pollution due to Toxic Metals in Ulhas River Flowing along the Dombivli City of Mumbai, India

“…As per the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the main sources of river water pollution, are the occasional discharge of untreated sewage and industrial effluent in rivers across the state. The pollution data of water bodies due to discharge of industrial waste [6,7,[22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] points out the need of systematic and regular monitoring of pollution level for further improvement in the industrial waste water treatment methods. We therefore, initiated a study to understand the heavy metals content in the water of Ulhas River along the Dombivli city, situated near Mumbai, India.…”