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Hg concentrations and stable isotope variations in tropical fish species of a gold-mining-impacted watershed in French Guiana

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Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine if gold-mining activities could impact the mercury (Hg) concentrations and isotopic signatures in freshwater fish consumed by riparian people in French Guiana. Total Hg, MeHg concentrations, and Hg stable isotopes ratios were analyzed in fish muscles from different species belonging to three feeding patterns (herbivorous, periphytophagous, and piscivorous). We compared tributaries impacted by gold-mining activities (Camopi, CR) with a pristine area upstream (Trois-Sauts, TS), along the Oyapock River. We measured δ15N and δ 13C to examine whether Hg patterns are due to differences in trophic level. Differences in δ 15N and δ 13C values between both studied sites were only observed for periphytophagous fish, due to difference of CN baselines, with enriched values at TS. Total Hg concentrations and Hg stable isotope signatures showed that Hg accumulated in fish from both areas has undergone different biogeochemical processes. Δ199Hg variation in fish (−0.5 to 0.2‰) was higher than the ecosystem baseline defined by a Δ199Hg of −0.66‰ in sediments, and suggested limited aqueous photochemical MeHg degradation. Photochemistry-corrected δ202Hg in fish was 0.7‰ higher than the baseline, consistent with biophysical and chemical isotope fractionation in the aquatic environment. While THg concentrations in periphytophagous fish were higher in the gold-mining area, disturbed by inputs of suspended particles, than in TS, the ensemble of Hg isotope shifts in fish is affected by the difference of biotic (methylation/demethylation) and abiotic (photochemistry) processes between both areas and did therefore not allow to resolve the contribution of gold-mining-related liquid Hg(0) in fish tissues. Mercury isotopes of MeHg in fish and lower trophic level organisms can be complementary to light stable isotope tracers.

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Acknowledgements

All the analyses were performed in two laboratories of the Midi-Pyrénées Observatory (OMP-GET and ECOLAB) in France. We would like to thank both teams of the HYDRECO laboratory and the Parc Amazonien de Guyane (PAG) for their help during sampling campaigns and the sharing of material devices. We sincerely acknowledge the indigenous communities (Wayãpi and Teko) of the study villages, the doctors from local Health Centers for their kind cooperation during the field work, and the fishermen for sharing their knowledge of the territory. We also thank Marc Pouilly and Fabrice Duponchelle from the French Research Institute for the Development (IRD) for their helpful comments on Amazonian fish behavior and diet. J. Chmeleff is thanked for expert management of the OMP mass spectrometry division in the GET laboratory.

Funding

Open access funding was provided by the IRD (French Research Institute for Sustainable Development). This work was supported by the French National Research Agency (ANR-11-CESA-0013, RIMNES Program).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geosciences Environnement Toulouse, CNRS/IRD/CNES/Université Toulouse III, 14 avenue Edouard Belin, 31400, Toulouse, France

    Laure Laffont, Sylvaine Goix, Jeroen E. Sonke & Laurence Maurice

  2. Section 4.6, Geomorphology, GFZ–German Research Centre for Geosciences, 14473, Potsdam, Germany

    Johanna Menges

  3. University Toulouse III, 14 avenue Edouard Belin, 31400, Toulouse, France

    Sylvaine Goix

  4. EPOC, EPHE, Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, 33120, Arcachon, France

    Sophie Gentès, Régine Maury-Brachet, Alexia Legeay & Patrice Gonzalez

  5. Parc Amazonien de Guyane, 1 rue Lederson, 97354, Remire-Montjoly, France

    Raphaëlle Rinaldo

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  1. Laure Laffont
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Contributions

LM was the coordinator of the RIMNES Research Program (funded by the French ANR). LM and RM-B designed the study dedicated to the ichthyologic part of the program. Formal analysis (THg, speciation, and Hg stable isotopes) and geochemical lab work were performed by LL, JM, and SGx under the supervision of JS. RR helped with logistics in French Guiana. Fish sampling was realized by RM-B, AL, and PG. Statistical analyses were performed by LL and SGx. Funds were acquired by LM and RR. The original draft was written by LL, SGx, JM, and LM and revised and edited by all authors.

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Correspondence to Laure Laffont or Laurence Maurice.

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Laffont, L., Menges, J., Goix, S. et al. Hg concentrations and stable isotope variations in tropical fish species of a gold-mining-impacted watershed in French Guiana. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 60609–60621 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-14858-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-14858-7

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