Abstract:
The main objective of this research is to determine the concentrations of mercury
in soil and water samples from the mining areas in the north and east of Sudan to
assess the pollutant risk of mercury on the environment, thus contributing to find
the optimal treatment methods for the presence and accumulation of mercury in
the environment.
Seven soil samples were collected from the mining areas of the Nile State,
northern Sudan, three soil samples and three rainwater samples were collected
from mining areas east of Atbara River, eastern Sudan.
The samples were analyzed by thermal decomposition, amalgamation, and atomic
absorption spectrophotometry.
Comparing the result of soil samples with Canadian Council of Ministers of the
Environment (CCME) guidelines for residential and agricultural limit it is found
that average concentration of mercury in soil (22.52µg/g) was 3.5 times the
permissible limit.
For water sample average concentrations of mercury was (0.2742 µg/L) that value
was approximately twice the permissible limit for cleaning water and within the
permissible limit for drinking water according to the Environmental Protection
Agency(EPA) recommendation.
The ratios that were reached, compared to the permissible limits globally, are
catastrophic and predict the occurrence of severe and destructive consequences for
the environment
