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Transfer of Heavy Metals Through Three Components: Sediments, Plants and Fish in the Area with Previous Mining Activity

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Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the ecological risk and distribution of heavy metals in sediment, plants and fish in a seriously polluted water reservoir in Krompachy, Slovakia. Special attention was given to the different food web positions of individual fish species (predators, omnivores) and their size. The degree of heavy metal contamination in sediments decreased in the order Cu > Pb > Cr > Hg > Cd, and their mutual proportion was largely consistent with concentrations found in aquatic plants, i.e. water sedges (Carex acutiformis). Of the seven fish species investigated, piscivorous perch (Perca fluviatilis) accumulated higher quantities of metal than fish situated at lower trophic levels. Interestingly, co-equal levels of heavy metals to those found in perch (P. fluviatilis) also occurred in rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus). The Hg values in some fish muscles exceeded the maximum permissible limits suggesting a persistent problem of old environmental burden from former mining activities.

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Acknowledgements

We specially thank David McLean for help with English language corrections. We gratefully acknowledge the funding of this study by the Slovak Research and Development Agency, projects No APVV-18–0467 and Grant Agency of the Ministry of Education of the Slovak Republic and Slovak Academy of Sciences (VEGA), project No 2/0126/20.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Parasitology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, 04001, Košice, Slovakia

    Tímea Brázová, Peter Šalamún, Dana Miklisová, Vladimíra Hanzelová & Mikuláš Oros

  2. Institute of Geotechnics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Košice, Slovakia

    Oľga Šestinová & Lenka Findoráková

Authors
  1. Tímea Brázová
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  2. Peter Šalamún
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  3. Dana Miklisová
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  4. Oľga Šestinová
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  5. Lenka Findoráková
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  6. Vladimíra Hanzelová
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  7. Mikuláš Oros
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Correspondence to Tímea Brázová.

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Brázová, T., Šalamún, P., Miklisová, D. et al. Transfer of Heavy Metals Through Three Components: Sediments, Plants and Fish in the Area with Previous Mining Activity. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 106, 485–492 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-021-03114-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-021-03114-w

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