Abstract:
Industrial and domestic solid waste dumping are the
major pollution sources polluting the Negombo estuary. Polluted
water and sediments in the estuary may cause heavy metals accumulation in fish. Therefore, this study was aimed to assess physico -
chemical parameters in water, heavy metals (Zn, Pb, Hg, Cd, Cu and
Cr) in water and fish tissues, to compare the levels of metals in fish
tissues with the available maximum recommended standards. The
study was carried out from January to December 2016 and monthly
sampling was done from the selected sampling sites. Physico
- chemical parameters and metal levels were detected through
standard methods. Water quality results revealed that temperature,
salinity, pH, EC, TSS, BOD and nutrient levels were below the
maximum permissible limits and COD levels were higher than the
discharge of industrial wastewater quality standards of the CEA, Sri
Lanka. According to the results, metal levels in water of the estuary
were below the tolerance limits for the wastewater standards of the
CEA except for Hg. In the Northern region of the estuary, higher
Pb, Cu and Cr levels were reported from the fish species collected.
As the “X-Press Pearl” shipwreck has posed a serious threat to the
Negombo estuary, this study can be considered as a baseline for the
future studies on water and sediment pollution and bioaccumulation
of heavy metals in edible fish species from the estuary
