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Abstract

Recently the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality made available thousands of test results from the 1990’s to 2022 that relate to levels of toxins found in fish from various bodies of water in Virginia. Of the numerous chemicals identified mercury, which is converted to methylmercury in the body, is of major concern. Long-term methylmercury exposure can lead to cancer/death, while exposure to small amounts can cause developmental/reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, digestive/immune disfunctions, as well as problems with lungs, skin, eyes and kidneys. With respect to the latter concern, this paper focuses on the kidney toxicity linked to methylmercury levels in the human body which may be responsible for up to 47 million Americans having chronic kidney disease. It has been documented that up to 90% of methylmercury in the human body is from seafood ingestion and that the amount of methylmercury in fish is directly related to coal burning powerplant emissions. This process has appeared to cause a significant amount of fish to become contaminated in Virginia’s waterways, yielding a mean level of methylmercury in 44,380 fish tested of 195 parts per billion/fish collected over a 23 year period. When this value is compared to what regulatory agencies view as a “safe level” of methylmercury in fish tissue (150 ppb – 500 ppb) one might think that this level of contamination is acceptable. However, when one compares the toxicokinetics of methylmercury at the levels recommended, using a 50 day half-life, with levels known to cause kidney toxicity (0.01 ppb) the levels identified in blood were 4 to 5 times above the toxicity level. Additionally, residual methylmercury levels after one year would roughly double the level in the blood, doubling the potential kidney toxicity dose. Burning coal causes more than just climate change!