Mercury

Mercury in fish harvested from the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries is a real concern. An accumulation of toxic mercury in humans can cause damage to the brain, kidney, and lungs.

This infographic shows how mercury travels from power plants to the air and into waterways, only to contaminate plankton and fish which are then consumed by people. Click image to view larger.

• Air pollution, primarily from power plants, is the main source of the mercury that contaminates fish in the Bay watershed.
• Mercury travels through the atmosphere and returns to the earth through precipitation.
• Mercury makes its way into our waterways when precipitation brings air pollution to the earth.
• Once mercury is in the water, biological processes can trun it into a highly toxic form called methylmercury.
• Plankton absorb methylmercury from the water and sediment.
• Fish eat contaminated plankton and smaller fish, and the methylmercury accululates in their tissues.
• Humans accumulate mercury in their bodies by eating contaminated fish.