Why is mercury so devastating to the environment

The mercury compounds bioaccumulated in the local fish and shellfish - major food sources for Minamata locals. In - medical professionals had identified an epidemic of an unknown disease to the central nervous system sweeping through the local population.

Pets, birds, fish and other marine animals were observed doing strange actions before dying in high numbers - leading medical researchers to believe some sort of environmental pollutant was to blame for the widespread harm. Realising that many victims of the disease came from the same families and ate much of the local seafood - it was determined that the disease was caused from heavy metal exposure from contaminated foods. Not long after - the culprit was identified as Chisso Corporation who had been dumping industrial chemical waste into the local waterways.

Why Is Mercury So Bad? Mercury is well known as one of the world's most potent neurotoxins. It is indisputable, scientific fact that mercury is highly toxic to humans. These releases can happen naturally. Both volcanoes and forest fires send mercury into the atmosphere. Human activities, however, are responsible for much of the mercury that is released into the environment.

The burning of coal, oil and wood as fuel can cause mercury to become airborne, as can burning wastes that contain mercury.

The amount of mercury deposited in a given area depends on how much mercury is released from local, regional, national, and international sources. Since mercury occurs naturally in coal and other fossil fuels, when people burn these fuels for energy, the mercury becomes airborne and goes into the atmosphere.

In the United States, power plants that burn coal to create electricity are the largest source of emissions; they account for about 44 percent of all manmade mercury emissions Source: National Emissions Inventory, version 2, Technical Support Document July pp, 10 MB, About PDF ; discussion starts on page of the PDF document. The burning of municipal and medical waste was once a major source of mercury emissions. You can view a chart showing the annual amount of emissions of mercury and mercury compounds into the air from facilities throughout the United States from to Depending on these factors, mercury in the atmosphere can be transported over a range of distances -- anywhere from a few feet from its source, to halfway around the globe -- before it is deposited in soil or water.

Mercury that remains in the air for prolonged periods of time and travels across continents is said to be in the "global cycle.

One major source of mercury emissions outside of the U. The main way that people are exposed to mercury is by eating fish and shellfish that have high levels of methylmercury, a highly toxic form of mercury, in their tissues.

A less common way people are exposed to mercury is breathing mercury vapor. This can happen when mercury is released from a container, or from a product or device that breaks.

If the mercury is not immediately contained or cleaned up, it can evaporate, becoming an invisible, odorless, toxic vapor. Mercury exposure at high levels can harm the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system of people of all ages. High levels of methylmercury in the bloodstream of babies developing in the womb and young children may harm their developing nervous systems, affecting their ability to think and learn. Learn more about health effects that can result from exposures to mercury.

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