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General Heavy metals are derived from a variety of sources such as motor vehicles, tyres, rubber, industrial waste, refuse leachate and corrosion of pipes and roofs. Heavy metals are toxic to aquatic organisms at varying levels of concentration and may accumulate in animals and in the human body. Heavy metals enter marine and estuarine ecosystems
through the discharge of industrial waste, treated sewage, stormwater
run-off, mining operations and other diffuse sources (such as from
vehicles). The most common heavy metal pollutants are arsenic, cadmium,
chromium, copper, nickel, lead and mercury. Some heavy metals such as zinc and copper are important in small quantities for biological processes in aquatic plants and animals and occur naturally in many river systems. However, when they are discharged in large quantities from sewage or industrial or agricultural run-off, they can be extremely harmful. Heavy metals can accumulate in sediments. Some heavy metals such as lead, mercury and cadmium can move up the food chain into human food sources. Toxicants in general Protocols ANZECC Monitoring Guidelines See Costs Analytical costs; approximately $250 per sample for a suite of 13 common metals in water (plus labour and transport) Case study Northern Australia People contacts Graeme Batley Organisation contacts ANSTO AWT
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Internal Links Algal Species Density and Diversity Fish Monitoring for Water Quality Physical and Chemical Monitoring Real Time Water Quality Monitoring |
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