Mercury Levels in the Macal River are down - but it's still not safe to eat the bay snook.
The latest result from samples of bay snook taken from the Macal River on the 23rd, 24th and 25th August 2011, indicated that the new levels of mercury found in the Bay Snook is 1.35 milligram per kilogram. That is down a quarter of a milligram from the last test in April of 2011, but it's still not safe for human consumption.
The Department of Environment reports that the mercury concentration is a still almost three times the recommended dose. The overall findings from the fish sampling indicated that of the fifteen types of fish analyzed ten or 66.7% showed decreases while three had increases.
The long term effects of mercury consumption include: mental retardation in children, poor development of infants, vision impairment, nervousness, and weakening of muscles in the hand and feet.
Cayo residents are advised to eating fish from other parts of the country. Where does the mercury come from?
Most likely, The BECOL dams upriver in the Cayo district. Dams create mercury contamination. Inorganic mercury is present in our soils. Stored in the soil, this type of mercury is relatively safe. But when areas are flooded and bacteria begin to digest the flooded soils, inorganic mercury changes to methylmercury which is a potent neurotoxin.
