The Causes and Effects of Mercury and Methylmercury Contamination in the Marine Environment: A Review

• Published in: Current pollution reports Vol. 8; no. 3; pp. 249 - 272
• Main Authors: Al-Sulaiti, Maetha M., Soubra, Lama, Al-Ghouti, Mohammad A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.09.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aquatic environment; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Bacteria; Bioaccumulation; Biogeochemistry; Bioindicators; Biological magnification; Biomonitoring; Chemical bonds; Compartments; Consumption; Contamination; Dimethylmercury; Earth and Environmental Science; Emissions; Environment; Environmental Law/Policy/Ecojustice; Fish; fish consumption; Food chains; Food contamination & poisoning; Heavy metals; human health; Indicator species; Industrial plant emissions; Industrial Pollution Prevention; Marine environment; Marine pollution; Mercury; Mercury (metal); Methylmercury; methylmercury compounds; Microorganisms; Monitoring/Environmental Analysis; Ocean surface; Outdoor air quality; Oxidation; petroleum; Pollution; risk; Salinity; Section Editors; Sediments; Sulfur; Surface water; Topical Collection on Water Pollution; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution (G Toor and L Nghiem; Water Pollution Control; Fate and transport; Mercury methylation; Mercury pollution; Wastewater; Mercury measurements
• ISSN: 2198-6592; 2198-6592
• DOI: 10.1007/s40726-022-00226-7

Purpose of Review The concern of mercury pollution and the impact that it poses on the marine environment were studied heavily since the case of the poison from Minamata bay in the 1960s. The present study provides an insight into the cycle of mercury and methylmercury in the marine environment and the bioindicators that reflect the exposure levels. The paper also used the driving forces, pressures, states, impacts, and responses (DPSIR) analysis to evaluate the global mercury and methylmercury contamination problem. Recent Findings The high global budgets of atmospheric total mercury influence the ocean surface water. Therefore, the aquatic environment contamination level is in turn affected by the surrounding emission sources such as industrial and petroleum activities in addition to the transport and fate of mercury across the environmental compartments. This will increase the mercury levels in fish species and will cause an adverse risk to human health through biomagnification. Summary This review presents a thorough description of mercury sources and emissions and their fate and transport across the different environmental compartments, despite the fact that serious mitigation measures were taken and guidelines were applied. The risk from fish consumption is still a serious concern as a result of the current mercury emissions and stability and persistent characteristics.