Risk of Mercury Exposure from Fish Consumption at Artisanal Small-Scale Gold Mining Areas in West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Background. The primary environmental risk associated with artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM) activities in Sekotong and Taliwang is waste discharged directly into the environment. This waste contains variable concentrations of heavy metals and a high level of mercury. When these elements are released into the environment, plants and animals can be contaminated. If mercury is methylated to methylmercury, levels can increase in concentration at each level of the food chain (biomagnify). Fish are a primary risk vector for methylmercury poisoning in humans, and represent a significant source of protein for the Sekotong and Taliwang communities. Objectives. The present study aimed to identify the concentration of mercury in fish from ASGM sites in Sekotong and Taliwang. Methods. Descriptive research was used to describe the mercury concentrations of fish in the present study. The fish species collected for the samples represented commercially available fish most commonly consumed by the community on a daily basis. Results. In Sekotong's ASGM area, the mercury concentration in Pilsbryoconcha exilis tissue was 596 ppb, 721 ppb for Sephia officinalis and 50% of the Euthynnus affinis samples had a high level of mercury, above the World Health Organization (WHO) maximum permissable limit for the sale of fish for human consumption of 0.5 ppb. Conclusions. Some fish species from the studied ASGM sites had high mercury concentrations above the maximum permissible mercury concentration in edible fish tissue. The risks associated with mercury exposure from fish consumption threaten community health.