How can mercury be removed from drinking water?
🌊 Discover the origins, dangers and solutions for removing mercury from drinking water through effective and natural filtration.
- Identification: highly toxic liquid metal
- Sources: volcanism, coal, mines, incinerators
- Global soil and ocean pollution
- Risks: neurotoxic, reprotoxic, chronic diseases
- Ultimate Star Filter®: removes >99% of mercury
Identification
Mercury is a shiny silver metal. It is the only metal that occurs naturally in liquid form under normal temperature and pressure conditions.
In Europe, mercury is restricted or banned for certain uses because of its high toxicity. Like cadmium and lead, it is one of the substances subject to health and environmental monitoring and is controlled in drinking water and food.
Main sources of emissions
Some mercury occurs naturally in volcanoes and geysers. However, the main source is human activity. In 4,000 years, humans have released more than 1,500,000 tonnes of mercury into the environment.
The main cause is the refining and combustion of fossil fuels, particularly coal in power stations. This is because fossil fuels come from the remains of organisms that have bioaccumulated mercury throughout their lives. The annual oil production of the United States alone can release up to 10,000 tonnes of mercury into the environment each year!
Next comes mining, including old gold mines. In countries where gold mining is widespread (Guyana), significant amounts of mercury are released into the environment.
Other sources of mercury include industrial incinerators and crematoria, which incinerate mercury-rich dental fillings. Some batteries also contain mercury, which is a significant source of pollution.
While emissions into the air are tending to decrease, releases into the soil and water are increasing. It is estimated that more than 80% of mercury pollution in lakes and rivers comes from human activity.
Mercury in the environment
Mercury is toxic to all known living species. Volatile at room temperature and therefore mobile in the environment, it is one of the most dangerous metals.
Mercury poses a global environmental problem for two main reasons:
- Its average concentration is increasing or remains at very worrying levels. This is the case, for example, in fish and mammals in all the world's oceans.
- It only takes a tiny amount of mercury to pollute large bodies of water. For example, 9 grams of mercury is enough to pollute approximately 10 hectares of water and render fish unfit for human consumption. By way of comparison, a 100-megawatt thermal power plant emits approximately 11 kg of mercury per year.
Mercury and human health
Mercury is toxic and ecotoxic in all doses and in all forms. It is a powerful neurotoxin and reproductive toxin. It is also suspected of being partly responsible for Alzheimer's disease, fibromyalgia and several other chronic diseases.
It is believed to be the sole cause of 250,000 cases of intellectual disability worldwide each year, mainly through the consumption of seafood contaminated with mercury.
Water filtration and mercury
Mercury spreads throughout the biosphere and therefore into drinking water. A good way to remove residual mercury from water is to use a high-performance water filter.
Our Ultimate Star Filter®, available in our Star Water Filter® filtration systems, effectively removes many pollutants, including more than 99% of mercury.