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Toxic Metals in Freshwater Fish from the Zagreb Area as Indicators of Environmental Pollution
Jasna Bošnir
Dinko Puntarić
Ivo Škes
Maja Klarić
Spomenka Šimić
Ivan Zorić
Radoslav Galić
Sažetak
The aim of this investigation was to determine the levels of heavy metals and metalloids
in freshwater fish from the Zagreb area. A total of 216 freshwater fish samples
from 5 sites were examined: Sava river upstream from Zagreb, Sava river at Zagreb,
Sava river downstream from Zagreb, Jarun Lake, and 5 »ecologic« fishponds from the
Zagreb surroundings. The metals lead, cadmium, mercury and the metalloid arsenic
were determined by the method of atomic absorption spectrometry. The mean pooled levels
of lead, cadmium and arsenic in all fish samples were 112.3 95 g/kg, 8.5 11
g/kg and 23.5 36 g/kg, and did not exceed the allowed levels of 1,000 mg/kg, 100
g/kg and 200 g/kg, respectively. In 4 fish samples, the levels of mercury exceeded the
allowed limit of 500 g/kg (509, 596, 605 and 788 g/kg), however, the pooled mean
level of mercury was 127.8 90 g/kg. There was no major difference in the levels of
heavy metals between the two fish families observed, although the levels of lead, cadmium
and mercury were higher in the family Ictaluridae (144 vs. 107 g/kg, 10.4 vs.
8.2 g/kg, and 153 vs. 124 g/kg, respectively), whereas the level of arsenic was higher
in the family Cyprinidae (23.8 vs. 21.8 g/kg). Although the Sava river at Zagreb is the
main recipient of sewage and wastewater in the Republic of Croatia, the levels of heavy
metals were within the allowed limits in all groups of freshwater fish samples, with the
exception of 4 samples that contained moderately elevated levels of mercury. Study results
suggest that only mercury could be considered a good indicator of environmental
pollution, because higher levels of mercury were measured in the fish from the Savariver than in the fish from the Jarun Lake and fishponds from the Zagreb surroundings,
considering both pooleded and fish family specified data.
Ključne riječi
heavy metals; freshwater fish; environment; pollution indicators; Zagreb; Croatia
Hrčak ID:
28117
URI
Datum izdavanja:
26.6.2003.
Posjeta: 3.245 *