ISSN:
1573-2932
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
Notes:
Abstract Fishing is of great importance in northern Finland, where large water-control projects have been constructed. Increased Hg content in fish from recently impounded reservoirs has stimulated an investigation of possible accumulation of Hg. Therefore, samples of fish and human hair have been analyzed for Hg content. The concentrations of Hg in fish from man-made lakes were higher than in fish from a background (natural) lake. Fish of prey, burbot (Lota lota) and pike (Esox lucius) contained more Hg (max 2.0 mg kg−1) than other species of fish and higher values were recorded in the flesh than in the liver. In the Porttipahta reservoir the Hg content of burbot and pike exceeded the Finnish safety limits of 0.5 and 1 mg kg−1. In samples of human hair there was also a clear difference between persons living near man-made lakes (mean 4.9 mg kg−1) and background (mean 1.6 mg kg−1) areas. The highest concentrations (about 30 mg kg−1) were found in hair samples from middle-aged people eating substantial amounts of fish from reservoirs. The concentrations were higher in males than in females probably caused by a higher fish consumption.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00599051
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