Ecologic studies of the spatial relationship between disease and sources of environmental contamination can help to ascertain the degree of risk to populations from contamination and to inform legislation to ameliorate the risk. Population risks associated with persistent low-level mercury exposure have recently begun to be of concern and current reports implicate environmental mercury as a pot...

An experimental tree swallow population was established in the headwaters of the Shenandoah River, Virginia, USA to assess the accumulation and effects of mercury contamination on birds that eat emergent aquatic insects. One tributary, the South River, was contaminated with mercury before 1950. Reproductive success of swallows nesting within 50 m of this river was compared to that of three unco...

background: aquatic ecosystems are frequently subjected to contamination by toxic heavy metals and pesticides, yet very little is known about the influence of pesticides on bioaccumulation of heavy metals in aquatic organisms. mercury is a toxic metal with no known biological benefit to organisms. bioavailability of mercury in aquatic environments depends on biological and non-biological parame...

Many older homes are equipped with mercury-containing gas regulators that reduce the pressure of natural gas in the mains to the low pressure used in home gas piping. Removal of these regulators can result in elemental mercury spills inside the home. In the summer of 2000, mercury spills were discovered in the basements of several Chicago-area homes after removal of gas regulators by gas compan...

background: mercury (hg) is a hazardous metal responsible for environmental contamination and human intoxication. methyl mercury bio-accumulation through food chain can be responsible for chronic mercury exposure of south caspian sea communities with a diet rich in fish. uncertainties about exposure levels that could have damaging consequences for nervous system development of infants makes bio...

abstract studies have shown that birds due to being in the high trophic levels on the ecosystems, and also high sensitivity to toxic substances are a useful indicator for the evaluation of mercury pollution. the objective of the present study was to evaluate mercury level in the feathers of turdus philomelos and turdus merula in khanikan forests as an indicator of mercury contamination. to atta...

Mercury concentrations were quantified in Halimione portulacoides (roots, stems and leaves) as well as in sediments from eight Portuguese estuarine systems, covering seventeen salt marshes with distinct degrees of mercury contamination. The concentration of mercury in the sediments ranged from 0.03 to 17.0 microg g(-1). The results show that the accumulation of mercury differed according to the...

Kodaikkanal, India, suffered mercury contamination due to emissions and waste from a thermometer factory. Kodai Lake is situated to the north of the factory. The present study determined mercury in waters, sediment and fish samples and compared the values with those from two other lakes, Berijam and Kukkal. Total mercury (Hg(T)) of 356-465 ng l(-1), and 50 ng l(-1) of mercury in methyl mercury ...

Background: Mercury (Hg) is a hazardous metal responsible for environmental contamination and human intoxication. Methyl mercury bio-accumulation through food chain can be responsible for chronic mercury exposure of South Caspian Sea communities with a diet rich in fish. Uncertainties about exposure levels that could have damaging consequences for nervous system development of infants makes b...

Most of the mercury contamination in lakes and streams of nonindustrialized regions of the United States and Canada is derived from atmospheric deposition. In order to determine the regional patterns of these inputs, seven mercury-in-precipitation monitoring sites were established in Minnesota, North Dakota, and Michigan. A 3-year study showed that the magnitude of mercury deposition was domina...