Spatiotemporal trends in fish mercury from a mine-dominated ecosystem: Clear lake, California

Ecological Applications

Volumn 18, Issue 8 SUPPL., 2008, Pages

  Suchanek, Thomas H ^a,d   Eagles Smith, Collin A ^a,d   Slotton, Darell G ^a   Jamesharner, E ^b   Colwell, Arthur E ^c   Anderson, Norman L ^c   Mullen, Lauri H ^a,e   Flanders, John R ^a,f   Adam, David P ^a,g   Mcelroy, Kenneth J ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^b WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^c Lake County Vector Control   (United States)

^d U S GEOLOGICAL SURVEY   (United States)

^e Parks and Open Space City of Eugene   (United States)

^f URS CORPORATION   (United States)

^g URS Corporation ^*  (United States)

Author keywords

Bioaccumulation; California; Clear Lake; Consumption guidelines; Fish; Mercury; Mining; Remediation; USA; Wildlife risk assessment

Indexed keywords

CYPRINIDAE; CYPRINUS CARPIO; DOROSOMA PETENENSE; HALIAEETUS LEUCOCEPHALUS; ICTALURUS PUNCTATUS; MENIDIA BERYLLINA; MERGUS MERGANSER; MICROPTERUS; MICROPTERUS SALMOIDES; PISCES;

FRESH WATER; MERCURY; METHYLMERCURY DERIVATIVE;

ANIMAL; ARTICLE; CHEMISTRY; ECOSYSTEM; FISH; METABOLISM; MINING; TIME; UNITED STATES; WATER POLLUTANT;

ANIMALS; CALIFORNIA; ECOSYSTEM; FISHES; FRESH WATER; MERCURY; METHYLMERCURY COMPOUNDS; MINING; TIME FACTORS; WATER POLLUTANTS, CHEMICAL;

EID: 67449085409     PISSN: 10510761     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1890/06-1900.1     Document Type: Article

References (71)

1. Abernathy, A. R., D. B. Cox, and C. R. Carter. 1975. Mercury concentrations in fish in lakes Keowee and Joceassee, South Carolina. Completion Report number B-07-09-191-00-573.
2. Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA. Alpers, C. N., M. P. Hunerlach, J. T. May, and R. L Hothem. 2005. Mercury contamination from historic gold mining in California. Fact Sheet FS-2005-3014. U.S. Geological Survey. hhttp://water.usgs.gov/pubs/fs/2005/3014/I
3. Anderson, D. W., T. H. Suchanek, C. A. Eagles-Smith, and T. M. Cahill, Jr. 2008. Mercury residues and productivity in Osprey and grebes from a mine-dominated ecosystem. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A227-A238.
4. Bloom, N. S. 1989. Determination of picogram levels of methylmercury by aqueous phase ethylation, followed by cryogenic gas chromatography with cold vapour atomic fluorescence detection. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 46:1131-1140.
5. Borgmann, U., and D. M. Whittle. 1991. Contaminant concentration trends in Lake Ontario lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush): 1977 to 1988. Journal of Great Lakes Research 17:368-381.
6. Brumbaugh, W. G., D. P. Krabbenhoft, D. R. Helsel, J. G. Wiener, and K. R. Echols. 2001. A national pilot study of mercury contamination of aquatic ecosystems along multiple gradients: bioaccumulation in fish. Biological Science Report USGS/BRD/BSR-2001-0009. U.S. Geological Survey, Columbia Environmental Research Center, Columbia, Missouri, USA.
7. CDFG [California Department of Fish and Game]. 1983. Memorandum from Richard Hansen, Laboratory Director, Water Pollution Control Laboratory, Department of Fish and Game to Brian Hunter, Regional Manager, Department of Fish and Game Region 3 Headquarters, Yountville, CA;regarding mercury analyses of fish collected in Clear Lake in November and December, 1983, 1-4. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, California, USA.
8. CDFG [California Department of Fish and Game]. 1984a. Water Pollution Control Laboratory analytical report L-89-84: Analysis of channel catfish samples received on 15 March 1984. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, California, USA.
9. CDFG [California Department of Fish and Game]. 1984b. Water Pollution Control Laboratory analytical report L-123-84: Analysis of channel catfish samples received on 25 April 1984. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, California, USA.
10. CDFG [California Department of Fish and Game]. 1984c. Water Pollution Control Laboratory analytical report L-457-83: Analysis of channel catfish samples received on 24 May 1984. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, California, USA.
11. CDFG [California Department of Fish and Game]. 1984d. Water Pollution Control Laboratory analytical report L-202-84: Analysis of fish samples received on 19 June 1984.
12. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, California, USA.
13. Chamberlin, C. E., R. Chaney, B. Finney, M. Hood, P. Lehman, M. McKee, and R. Willis. 1990. Abatement and control study: Sulphur Bank Mine and Clear Lake. Environmental Resources Engineering Department, Humboldt State University, Arcata, California, USA.
14. Churchill, R. K. 2000. Contributions of mercury to California's environment from mercury and gold mining activities-insights from the historical record. Pages 33-36 in Proceedings: Assessing and managing mercury from historic and current mining activities, 28 November 2000. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Ada, Oklahoma, USA.
15. Cizdziel, J., T. Hinners, C. Cross, and J. Pollard. 2003. Distribution of mercury in the tissues of five species of freshwater fish from Lake Mead, USA. Journal of Environmental Monitoring 5:802-807. (Pubitemid 37297035)
16. CVRWQCB [Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board]. 1985. Summary of mercury data collection at Clear Lake, Sacramento, CA. Staff Report. Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley, California, USA
17. CVRWQCB [Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board]. 2002. Amendments to the Water Quality Control Plan for the Sacramento River and San Joaquin River Basins for the control of mercury in Clear Lake (Lake County). Staff Report and Functionally Equivalent Document. Final Report. California Environmental Protection Agency, Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley, California, USA.
18. Davis, J. A., B. K. Greenfield, G. Ichikawa, and M. Stephenson. 2003. Mercury in sport fish from the Delta Region (Task 2A). Final Report. CALFED Bay-Delta Mercury Project, Sacramento, California, USA.
19. Davis, J. A., J. L. Grenier, A. R. Melwani, S. Bezalel, E. Letteney, E. J. Zhang, and M. Odaya. 2007. Bioaccumulation of pollutants in California waters: A review of historic data and assessment of impacts on fishing and aquatic life. California State Water Resources Control Board, Sacramento, California, USA.
20. Davis, J. A., M. D. May, G. Ichikawa, and D. Crane. 2000. Contaminant concentrations in fish from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Lower San Joaquin River 1998. San Francisco Estuary Institute, Richmond, California, USA.
21. Eagles-Smith, C. A. 2006. Mercury in fish: Food web structure, trophic transfer, and bioaccumulation in two California lakes. Dissertation. University of California, Davis, California, USA.
22. Eagles-Smith, C. A., T. H. Suchanek, A. E. Colwell, and N. L. Anderson. 2008a. Mercury trophic transfer in a eutrophic lake: The importance of habitat-specific foraging. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A196-A212.
23. Eagles-Smith, C. A., T. H. Suchanek, A. E. Colwell, N. L. Anderson, and P. B. Moyle. 2008b. Changes in fish diets and food web mercury bioaccumulation induced by an invasive planktivorous fish. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement): A213-A226.
24. Effler, S. E., editor. 1996. Limnological and engineering analysis of a polluted lake: Prelude to environmental management of Onondaga Lake, New York. Springer-Verlag, New York, New York, USA.
25. Francesconi, K. A., R. C. J. Lenanton, N. Caputi, and S. Jones. 1997. Long-term study of mercury concentrations in fish following cessation of a mercury-containing discharge. Marine Environmental Research 43:27-40. (Pubitemid 26406503)
26. Goldstein, R. M., M. E. Brigham, and J. C. Stauffer. 1996. Comparison of mercury concentrations in liver, muscle, whole bodies, and composites of fish from the Red River of the North. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 53:244-252.
27. Greenfield, B. K., J. A. Davis, R. Fairey, C. Roberts, D. Crane, and G. Ichikawa. 2005. Seasonal, interannual, and long-term variation in sport fish contamination, San Francisco Bay. Science of the Total Environment 336:25-43. (Pubitemid 39626815)
28. Has-Schön, E., I. Bogut, and I. Strelec. 2006. Heavy metal profile in five fish species included in human diet, domiciled in the end flow of River Neretva (Croatia). Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 50:545-551.
29. Herut, B., N. K. Hornung, and Y. Cohen. 1996. Environmental relaxation in response to reduced contaminant input: The case of mercury pollution in Haifa Bay, Israel. Marine Pollution Bulletin 32:366-373.
30. Hightower, J. M., and D. Moore. 2003. Mercury levels in highend consumers of fish. Environmental Health Perspectives 111:1-5.
31. Keeler, G., G. Glinsorn, and N. Pirrone. 1995. Particulate mercury in the atmosphere: Its significance, transport, transformation and sources. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 80:159-168. (Pubitemid 26438193)
32. Koirtyohann, S. R., R. Meers, and L. I. Graham. 1974. Mercury levels in fishes from some Missouri lakes with and without known mercury pollution. Environmental Research 8:1-11.
33. Lacerda, L. D., and W. Salomons. 1999. Mercury contamination from New World gold and silver mine tailings. Pages 73-87 in R. Ebinghaus, R. R. Turner, L. D. Lacerda, O. Vasiliev, and W. Salomons, editors. Mercury contaminated sites. Springer, Berlin, Germany.
34. Larry Walker Associates. 2000. Sacramento River Watershed Program annual monitoring report: 1998-1999. Larry Walker Associates, Davis, California, USA.
35. Lindeström L.,2001.,Mercury in sediment and fish communities of Lake Vänern, Sweden: Recovery from contamination,Ambio,30:,538-544. (Pubitemid 34115052)
36. Lockhart, W. L., P. Wilkinson, B. N. Billeck, R. V. Hunt, R. Wagemann, and G. J. Brunskill. 1995. Current and historical inputs of mercury to high-latitude lakes in Canada and to Hudson Bay. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 80:603-610. (Pubitemid 26443102)
37. Lodenius, M. 1991. Mercury concentrations in an aquatic ecosystem during twenty years following abatement (of) the pollution source. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 56:323-332.
38. May, J. T., R. L. Hothem, and C. N. Alpers. 2005. Mercury concentrations in fishes from select waterbodies in Trinity County, California, 2000-2002. Open-File Report 2005-1321. U.S. Geological Survey, Sacramento, California, USA. hhttp://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1321/I
39. May, J. T., R. L. Hothem, C. N. Alpers, and M. A. Law. 2000. Mercury bioaccumulation in fish in a region affected by historic gold mining: The South Yuba River, Deer Creek, and Bear River watersheds, California, 1999. Open-File Report 00-367. U.S. Geological Survey, Sacramento, California. hhttp://ca.water.usgs.gov/archive/reports/ofr00367/I
40. Mergler, D., H. A. Anderson, L. H. M. Chan, K. R. Mahaffey, M. Murray, M. Sakamoto, and A. H. Stern. 2007. Methylmercury exposure and health effects in humans: A worldwide concern. Ambio 36:3-11. (Pubitemid 46587110)
41. Moyle, P. B. 2002. Inland fishes of California: Revised and expanded. University of California Press, Berkeley, California, USA.
42. Munthe, J., R. A. Bodaly, B. A. Branfireun, C. T. Driscoll, C. C. Gillmour, R. Harris, M. Horvat, M. Lucotte, and O. Malm. 2007. Recovery of mercury-contaminated fisheries. Ambio 36:33-44. (Pubitemid 46587113)
43. NAS [National Academy of Sciences]. 1973. A report of the Committee on Water Quality: Water quality criteria, 1972. EPA R3-73-033. National Academy of Science, National Academy of Engineers, Washington, D.C., USA.
44. Parks, J. W., and A. L. Hamilton. 1987. Accelerating recovery of the mercury-contaminated Wabigoon/English River system. Hydrobiologia 149:159-188.
45. Rasmussen, D. 1993. Toxic substances monitoring report: 1991 data report. State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Quality, Sacramento, California, USA.
46. ReMetrix. 2003. Assessment of Clear Lake, CA for submersed aquatic vegetation, morphology, and sediment. Final Project Report. ReMetrix, Lake County, California, USA.
47. Roesijadi, G. 1982. Uptake and incorporation of mercury into mercury-binding proteins of gills of Mytilus edulis as a function of time. Marine Biology 66:151-152.
48. Rueda, F. J., S. G. Schladow, and J. F. Clark. 2008. Mechanisms of contaminant transport in a multi-basin lake. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A72-A87.
49. Scheider, W. A., C. Cox, A. Hayton, G. Hitchin, and A. Vaillancourt. 1998. Current status and temporal trends in concentrations of persistent toxic substances in sport fish and juvenile forage fish in the Canadian waters of the Great Lakes. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 53:57-76. (Pubitemid 28458421)
50. Scheuhammer, A. M., M. W. Meyer, M. B. Sandheinrich, and M. W. Murray. 2007. Effects of environmental methylmercury on the health of wild birds, mammals and fish. Ambio 36:12-18. (Pubitemid 46587111)
51. Schwarzbach, S., L. Thompson, and T. Adelsbach. 2001. An investigation of mercury bioaccumulation in the Upper Cache Creek watershed, 1997-1998. Environmental Contam-inants Division Off Refuge Investigations Report FFS number 1130 1F22. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Contaminants Division, Sacramento, California, USA.
52. Slotton, D. G., J. E. Reuter, and C. R. Goldman. 1995. Mercury uptake patterns of biota in a seasonally anoxic northern California reservoir. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 80:841-850. (Pubitemid 26447415)
53. Southworth, G. R., R. R. Turner, M. J. Peterson, M. A. Bogle, and M. G. Ryon. 2000. Response of mercury contamination in fish to decreased aquaeous concentrations and loading of inorganic mercury in a small stream. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 63:481-494. (Pubitemid 30490619)
54. Stratton, J. W., D. F. Smith, A. M. Fan, and S. A. Book. 1987. Methyl mercury in northern coastal mountain lakes: Guidelines for sport fish consumption for Clear Lake (Lake County), Lake Berryessa (Napa County), and Lake Herman (Solano County). State of California Department of Health Services, Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, Berkeley, California, USA.
55. Suchanek, T. H., J. Cooke, K. Keller, S. Jorgensen, P. J. Richerson, C. A. Eagles-Smith, E. J. Harner, and D. P. Adam. In press. A mass balance mercury budget for a minedominated lake: Clear Lake, California. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution. [doi: 10.1007/s11270-008-9757-1]
56. Suchanek, T. H., C. A. Eagles-Smith, D. G. Slotton, E. J. Harner, and D. P. Adam. 2008a. Mercury in abiotic matrices of Clear Lake, California: Human health and ecotoxicological implications. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A128-A157.
57. Suchanek, T. H., C. A. Eagles-Smith, D. G. Slotton, E. J. Harner, D. P. Adam, A. E. Colwell, N. L. Anderson, and D. L. Woodward. 2008b. Mine-derived mercury: Effects on lower trophic species in Clear Lake, California. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A158-A176.
58. Suchanek, T. H., D. C. Nelson, R. Zierenberg, A. L. Bern, W. Shipp, P. King, and K. McElroy. 2000a. Influence of AMD from the abandoned Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine on methyl mercury production in Clear Lake (CA). Pages 218-224 in Proceedings: Assessing and managing mercury from historic and current mining activities, 28 November 2000. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Ada, Oklahoma, USA.
59. Suchanek, T. H., P. J. Richerson, J. R. Flanders, D. C. Nelson, L. H. Mullen, L. L. Brister, and J. C. Becker. 2000b. Monitoring inter-Annual variability reveals sources of mercury contamination in Clear Lake, California. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 64:299-310.
60. Suchanek, T. H., et al. 2003. Evaluating and managing a multiply stressed ecosystem at Clear Lake, California: A holistic ecosystem approach. Pages 1239-1271 in D. J. Rapport, W. L. Lasley, D. E. Rolston, N. O. Nielsen, C. O. Qualset, and A. B. Damania, editors. Managing for healthy ecosystems. Lewis, Boca Raton, Florida, USA.
61. Suchanek, T. H., et al. 2008c. The legacy of mercury cycling from mining sources in an aquatic ecosystem: From ore to organism. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A12-A28.
62. Tukey, J. W. 1977. Exploratory data analysis. Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, USA.
63. Turner, R. R., and G. W. Southworth. 1999. Mercurycontaminated industrial and mining sites in North America: An overview with selected case studies. Pages 89-112 in R. Ebinghaus, R. R. Turner, L. D. Lacerda, O. Vasiliev, and W. Salomons, editors. Mercury contaminated sites. Springer, Berlin, Germany.
64. U.S. EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency]. 2001. Water quality criterion for protection of human health: Methylmercury. EPA-823-R-01-001. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Science and Technology, Office of Water, Washington, D.C., USA.
65. U.S. EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency]. 2005. 2004 national listing of fish advisories fact sheet. Fact sheet EPA-823-F-05-004. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., USA.
66. U.S. FDA [U.S. Food and Drug Administration]. 1984. Shellfish sanitation interpretation: Action levels for chemicals and poisonous substances. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Shellfish Sanitation Branch, Washington, D.C., USA.
67. U.S. FWS [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]. 2003. Evaluation of the Clean Water Act Section 304(a) human health criterion for methylmercury: Protectiveness for threatened and endangered wildlife in California. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, Environmental Contaminants Division, Sacramento, California, USA.
68. U.S. FWS [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]. 2004. Evaluation of numeric wildlife targets for methylmercury in the development of total maximum daily loads for the Cache Creek and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watersheds. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office, Environmental Contaminants Division, Sacramento, California, USA.
69. Wiener, J. G., D. P. Krabbenhoft, G. H. Heinz, and A. M. Scheuhammer. 2003. Ecotoxicology of mercury. Pages 409-463 in D. J. Hoffman, B. A. Rattner, G. A. Burton, Jr., and J. Cairns, Jr., editors. Handbook of ecotoxicology. Second edition. Lewis, Boca Raton, Florida, USA.
70. Wiener, J. G., and D. J. Spry. 1996. Toxicological significance of mercury in freshwater fish. Pages 297-339 in W. N. Beyer, G. H. Heinz, and A. W. Redmon-Norwood, editors. Environmental contaminants in wildlife: Interpreting tissue concentrations. Lewis, Boca Raton, Florida, USA.
71. Wiener, J. G., and T. H. Suchanek. 2008. The basis for ecotoxicological concern in aquatic ecosystems contaminated by historical mercury mining. Ecological Applications 18(Supplement):A3-A11.