Metal concentrations of common freshwater and marine fish from the Pearl River Delta, South China

摘要

Axial muscles from 10 species each of freshwater and marine fish purchased from markets in Hong Kong were also analyzed for As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn. Marine fish had higher Hg concentrations and lower Pb concentrations than those in freshwater fishes. A few fish species had average concentrations over the international standards for Cd and Pb established by the European Union and China National Standard Management Department. Total Hg concentrations in 10 out of 20 market fish species were generally over those of World Health Organization's recommended limit of 0.2mg/kg for at risk groups such as children and pregnant women. The daily intake through fish consumption of these metals was compared with the Provisional Tolerahie Weekly Intake proposed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). There appears to be potential threat to local people with a high marine fish consumption rate (142.4g/day) due to Hg contamination.