Mercury pollution in sediments,benthic organisms and inshore fishes of Haifa Bay,Israel |
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| Authors: | Hava Hornung Boris S Krumgalz Yuval Cohen |
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| Institution: | Israel Oceanographic & Limnological Research, Tel-Shikmona, POB 8030, Haifa 31080, Israel;Environmental Protection Service, Ministry of the Interior, POB 6158, Jerusalem 91060, Israel |
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| Abstract: | Total mercury concentrations were determined in surficial sediments, eleven species of benthic organisms and six species of fish from Haifa Bay, Israel. The results show that essentially all of the shallow water zone of the Bay receives anthropogenic mercury. A mercury-cell chlor-alkali plant was identified as the source of pollution. Surficial sediments in the vicinity of the plant, containing up to 0·99 μg Hg/g dry weight, were up to 157 times enriched in mercury relative to an unpolluted area. Mercury levels in the benthic organisms reflected the levels in the sediments. Maximal concentrations reaching 38·7 and 18·2 μg Hg/g dry weight were found in the carnivorous gastropod molluscs Arcularia circumcinta and Arcularia gibbosula, respectively. In all fish species, specimens caught in Haifa Bay had higher mercury concentrations in the muscle tissue than specimens caught south of the Bay. A maximal value of 1·66 μg Hg/g wet weight was recorded in Diplodus sargus. |
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