Mercury levels in fish, invertebrates and sediment in a recently recorded polluted area (Nissum Broad, western Limfjord, Denmark)

High concentrations of mercury were measured in sediment and animals collected in the immediate vicinity of a closed-down chemical factory. Sediment contained up to 22 ppm (dry wt) of mercury, deposit-feeding bivalves between 1.4 and 4.4 ppm (wet wt), suspension-feeding bivalves between 0.9 and 1.9 ppm and predatory fish between 0.3 and 0.8 ppm. Outside the ‘hot spot’ area, the mercury concentration in sediment and mussels (Mytilus edulis) rapidly decreased with increasing distance from the former factory. Mercury concentration in flounders (Platichthys flesus) also decreased with distance from the source; the decline was, however, much less marked.