Results of long-term monitoring of mercury contamination of components of the Lower Don ecosystem
https://doi.org/10.36038/2307-3497-2025-201-118-130
EDN: JANZME
Abstract
The aim of the work is to study mercury pollution of components of aquatic ecosystems of the Lower Don, since mercury is a widespread pollutant in water bodies with high toxicity for living organisms and the ability to bioaccumulate.
Materials and methods. The results of studies of mercury content in water, bottom sediments and aquatic organisms in the lower reaches of the Don River, collected at 10-25 stations during the period 1995-2024 in the spring, summer and autumn seasons, are presented. Mercury was determined using the cold vapor atomic absorption method.
Results: in 1995-2005, the mercury concentration in the water of the Lower Don was high on average, then for 15 years its content was at a low level, and from 2020 to 2024, cases of high mercury concentrations began to be recorded again, with maximums in the area of the Romanovskaya station (up to 62 MPC) and the city of Semikarakorsk (up to 140 MPC). In 2022, in the spring-summer period of the year in the area of st. Romanovskaya, mercury accumulation was detected not only in the water, but also in bottom sediments. In the modern period, a higher mercury content has been noted in the muscles of predatory fish species without exceeding the permissible level.
The novelty: for the first time, data on mercury content in water and bottom sediments of the Lower Don over 30 years of observations and aquatic bioresources in the modern period (2020-2024) were summarized and analyzed.
Practical significance: the obtained results were used to establish safety criteria for the waters of the Lower Don and commercial fish in accordance with the standard of maximum permissible mercury concentration for fishery waters adopted in Russia and the requirements of the Technical Regulations of the Customs Union.
About the Authors
J. V. Kosenko
Azov-Black Sea Branch of VNIRO («AzNIIRKH»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
21b Beregovaya st., Rostov-on-Don, 344002
L. G. Gorgola
Azov-Black Sea Branch of VNIRO («AzNIIRKH»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
21b Beregovaya st., Rostov-on-Don, 344002
I. V. Korablina
Azov-Black Sea Branch of VNIRO («AzNIIRKH»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
21b Beregovaya st., Rostov-on-Don, 344002
T. E. Baskakova
Azov-Black Sea Branch of VNIRO («AzNIIRKH»)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
21b Beregovaya st., Rostov-on-Don, 344002
References
1. Volgina T.N., Novikov V.T., Enkova A.Yu. 2009. One of the ways to solve the problem of destruction of organometallic pesticides // Modern science-intensive technologies. No. 3. P. 55-56. (In Russ.)
2. Gorbunov A.V., Lyapunov S.M., Okina O.I. 2018. Bioaccumulation of mercury in freshwater fish tissues // Human Ecology. Vol. 25, No. 11. P. 23-31. DOI: 10.33396/1728‑0869‑2018‑11‑23‑31. (In Russ.)
3. Gorgola L.G., Barabashin T.O. 2021. Assessment of the degree of accumulation of heavy metals by the Don River in the period from 2019 to 2021 // Actual problems of ecology and nature management. SFU Сoll. Papers / K.S. Kazeev ed. Rostov-on-Don, Taganrog: SFU Publish. Р. 24. (In Russ.)
4. Gorgola L.G., Barabashin T.O., Korablina I.V. 2023. Assessment of mercury accumulation in the water of the lower reaches of the Don River for the purposes of aquaculture and artificial reproduction of aquatic organisms // Modern aspects in fisheries science and genomic technologies in aquaculture and fisheries. Mat. of the IV Scient. schoolconf. of young scientists and specialists. Moscow region, Anosino vil., November 30 – December 4, 2023. Moscow: VNIRO Publish. P. 25. (In Russ.)
5. Gorgola L.G., Barabashin T.O., Korablina I. V., Petrenko A. A., Slepukhina E.A. 2023. Assessment of the accumulation of heavy metals (Hg, Cd, Pb) in the organs and tissues of fish of the lower reaches of the river. The Don in the summer of 2023 // Current issues of aquatic and coastal ecosystems: a collection of materials of the All-Russ. conf. dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the birth of O.G. Mironov. Sevastopol, October 2-5, 2023. Sevastopol: IBSS Publish. P. 88-90. (In Russ.)
6. Gorgola L.G., Korablina I.V., Barabashin T.O. 2022. Comparative assessment of the accumulation of cadmium and mercury in the fish of the Veselovsky reservoir and the lower reaches of the Don River // Modern problems and prospects for the development of the fisheries complex. Proc. of the X Inter. Scient. and Pract. Conf. of Young Scientists and specialists. Moscow, November 10-11, 2022. Moscow: VNIRO Publish. P. 268-271. (In Russ.).
7. Gremyachikh V.A., Lozhkina R.A., Komov V.T. 2019. Spatial and temporal variability of mercury content in the river perch Perca fluviatilis Linnaeus, 1758 (Perciformes: Percidae) of the Rybinsk reservoir at the turn of the XX-XXI centuries // Transformation of ecosystems. No. 2 (2). Р. 85-95. DOI: 10.15407/fsu2015.03.018. (In Russ.).
8. Gritsinyak I.I., Yanovich D.A., Bekh V.V. 2015. The influence of nonessential elements (mercury, arsenic) on the body of salmonid fish (review) // Fisheries Science of Ukraine. No. 3(33). Р. 18-33. DOI: 10.15407/fsu2015.03.018. (In Russ.).
9. Israel Yu.A., Tsyban A.V. 1993. Review of the ecological state of the seas of the Russian Federation and certain areas of the World Ocean in 1992. Moscow: Hydrometeoizdat. 173 p. (In Russ.).
10. Korotkova L. I., Korablina I. V., Barabashin T. O. 2019. Accumulation of priority pollutants in the fish of the Sea of Azov over the last decade // Aquatic bioresources and habitat. V. 2. No. 3. P. 20-32. (In Russ.).
11. Kosenko Yu.V., Korablika I. V., Gorgola L. G., Baskakova T. E., Elfimova N. S. 2024. Habitat conditions of aquatic bioresources in the waters of the Lower Don (2015-2024) // Aquatic bioresources and habitat. Vol. 7. No. 4. Р. 40-53. DOI: 10.47921/2619‑1024_2024_7_4_40. (In Russ.).
12. Kulik Ya.S., Kosenko Yu.V., Korablina I. V., Trushkov A. V., Baskakova T. E., Dolzhanov P. B., Alekseeva N. V. 2025. Characteristics of the habitat conditions of aquatic bioresources in the Mius River in 2024 // Water resources and habitat. V. 8. No. 1. Р. 26-40. DOI:10.47921/2619‑1024_2025_8_1_26. (In Russ.).
13. Lvova O.A., Krygina N.V. 2020. Mercury content in various components of the Volga-Caspian ecosystem (water, bottom sediments, hydrobionts) // Proc. Intern. scient. and pract. Conf. «Ecology and Nature Management». Magas, October 21-23, 2020 Magas.: KEP LLC. Р. 264-271. (In Russ.).
14. Mikhailenko A.V. 2020. Mercury pollution of water bodies as a factor of sustainable development of the urbanized area of the South-West of the Rostov region // Ecology of the 21st CENTURY: synthesis of education and science. Proc. of the VI Intern. Scient. and Pract. Conf. Chelyabinsk, May 18-21, 2020. Chelyabinsk: SUSU Publish. Р. 215-217. (In Russ.)
15. Mikhailenko A.V., Ruban D.A. 2019. Mercury pollution of water bodies as a factor of sustainable development of the urbanized area of the South-West of the Rostov region // Environmental problems of industrial cities. Proc. of the 9th Intern. Scient. and Pract. Conf. Saratov, April 10-12, 2019 / E.I. Tikhomirova ed. Saratov: Yuri Gagarin SSTU. Р. 70-74. (In Russ.)
16. Moore J.V., Ramamoorthy S. 1987. Heavy metals in natural waters. Moscow: Mir. 286 p. (In Russ.) (Moore J. W. , Ramamoorthy S. 1984. Heavy Metals in Natural Waters. Applied Monitoring and Impact Assessment. SpringerVerlag: New York-Berlin-Heidelberg-Nokyo. 286 p.).
17. Nguyen Thi Thuy Nhung. 2024. Features of mercury migration and transformation in the aquatic ecosystem of the estuarine region of the Krasnaya River (Vietnam). PhD Abstr. in biology. Makhachkala: DagFRC RAS. 24 p. (In Russ.)
18. Nemova N.N., Lysenko L.A., Meshcheryakova O.V., Komov V.T. 2014. Mercury in fish: a biochemical indication // Biosphere. V. 6. No. 2. Р. 176-185 (In Russ.)
19. Novikov M.A., Gorbacheva E.A., Kharlamova M.N. 2023. Mercury content in commercial fish of the Barents Sea (according to long-term data) // Trudy VNIRO. V. 191. Р. 112-123. DOI: 10.36038/2307‑3497‑2023‑191‑112‑123. (In Russ.).
20. Pavlenko L.F., Korablina I.V., Barabashin T.O., Ekik V.S. 2022. Priority toxicants in the elements of the Lower Don ecosystem // Water resources. V. 49, No. 3. Р. 298-304. DOI: 10.31857/S0321059622030117. (In Russ.)
21. Perevoznikov M.A., Bogdanova E. A. 1999. Heavy metals in freshwater ecosystems. Saint Petersburg: GOSNIORH Publish. 228 р. (In Russ.)
22. Popov P.A., Androsova N.V., Popov V.A. 2019. The nature of mercury accumulation in the fish of the Ob River // Russian Journal of Applied Ecology. No. 4 (20). Р. 51-56. (In Russ.)
23. Reshetnyak O. S. 2022. Long-term variability of mercury compounds in Russian river ecosystems according to monitoring data // Geoecology. Engineering Geology, hydrogeology, geocryology. No. 2. Р. 70-79. DOI: 10.31857/S0869780922020060. (In Russ.).
24. Chaplygin V.A., Ershova T.S., Zaitsev V.F. 2016. Mercury content in the muscles of hydrobionts of the Caspian Sea // Bulletin of the AGTU. No. 2. P. 108-112 (In Russ.)
25. Shchekochikhina E. V. 2011. Engineering and geological features of the Sarmatian clays of the marginal troughs of the southern Russian platform: PhD abstr. in geology and mineralogy. Volgograd: VolgSTU 23 p. (In Russ.)
26. Eirikh S. Since 2024. Mercury in water and bottom sediments of the Irtysh River: problems and reliability of its definition and pollution estimates // Proceedings of the Altai branch of the RGS. No. 3 (74). Р. 71-99. DOI: 10.24412/2410‑1192‑2024‑17406 (In Russ.)
27. Yanin E.P. 2006. Mercury emissions into the atmosphere from coal burning in Russia // Resource-saving technologies. No. 3. P. 3-14. (In Russ.)
28. Boszke L., Glosinska G., Siepak J. 2002. Some aspects of speciation of mercury in a water environment // Pol. J. Environ. Stud. V. 11 (4). Р. 285-298.
29. Jezierska B., Ługowska K., Witeska M. 2009. The effects of heavy metals on embryonic development of fish (a review) // Fish. Physiol. Biochem. 35. P. 625-640. DOI: 10.1007/s10695‑008‑9284‑4
30. Kidd K., Batchelar K. 2011. Mercury // Fish Rhysiology. 31. Part B.P. 237-295. DOI: 10.1016/S1546‑5098(11)31027‑8.
31. Ren Z.H., Cao L., Huang W., Liu J.H., Cui W.T., Dou S.Z. 2019. Toxicity test assay of waterborne methylmercury on the Japanese Flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) at embryoniclarval stages // Bull. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 102. P. 770-777. DOI: 10.1007/s00128‑019‑02619‑9.
32. Schindler J.E., Alberts J.J. 1977. Behavior of mercury, chromium, and cadmium in aquatic systems. Washington, DC, US Environmental Protection Agency. P. 1-61.
Review
For citations:
Kosenko J.V., Gorgola L.G., Korablina I.V., Baskakova T.E. Results of long-term monitoring of mercury contamination of components of the Lower Don ecosystem. Trudy VNIRO. 2025;201:118-130. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.36038/2307-3497-2025-201-118-130. EDN: JANZME
Email this article 