Biomagnification Case Study

Biomagnification, occurs when the concentration of a substance, such as DDT or Mercury, in an organism exceeds the background concentration of the substance in its die. Biomagnification increase results into persistence, food chain energetic, low or non-existent rate of internal degradation or excretion of the substance.  Mercury is used to make thermometers, barometers and other scientific instruments. Mercury conducts electricity and is used to make silent, position dependent switches. Mercury vapor is used in streetlights, fluorescent lamps and advertising signs. Mercury itself is a naturally occurring element that is present throughout the environment; also in plants and animals. Human industrial pursuit such as coal-fired electricity generation, smelting and the incineration of waste increases the amount of airborne Mercury which eventually finds its way into lakes, rivers and the ocean, where it is consumed by unsuspecting fish and other marine life. When Mercury falls in rain or snow, it may flow into bodies of water like lakes and streams as it flows it gets picked up by organisms. Bacteria in soils and sediments convert mercury to methyl-mercury. In this form, it’s eaten by tiny aquatic plants and animals. Fish that eat these organisms build up methyl-mercury in their bodies. As bigger fish eat the smaller ones, the methyl-mercury is concentrated further up the food chain. Then after every small organism gets eaten by a bigger one the food chain finally reaches humans. There have been actions taken to limit mercury pollution. “Under the authority of the Clean Air Act, EPA has developed the first national standard limiting releases of mercury and other toxic air pollutants from existing coal- and oil-fired power plants. As proposed in March 2011, this standard will require power plant owners to cut overall emissions of mercury by more than 90 percent using widely available, proven pollution control technologies.”

Work Sited 

"America's Biggest Mercury Polluters: How Cleaning up the Dirtiest Power Plants Will Protect Public Health." America's Biggest Mercury Polluters: How Cleaning up the Dirtiest Power Plants Will Protect Public Health. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Oct. 2015.