Mercury lingers on

By David Bradley2010-03-01T00:00:00

The Shenandoah Valley rivers under investigation

Shenandoah Valley rivers still show signs of mercury toxicity 50 years after contamination

The toxic heavy metal, mercury, can last in the environment and continue to cause environmental problems for much longer than previously thought, according to a study of riverbank and floodplain soils contaminated in Waynesboro, Virginia, US. The soil was contaminated by waste released by a textile manufacturing plant more than half a century ago and remains the major source of mercury poisoning in fish in several Shenandoah Valley rivers.

In a report, highlighting this ongoing environmental problem, Jack Eggleston of the US Geological Survey (USGS) explains that a fifth of a tonne of mercury enters the South River every year from the soil. But, to meet safety standards in fish for human consumption, a reduction of 99 per cent is needed.

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