Nine-week temporal distribution of mercury, arsenic, cadmium, lead and chromium in eel muscle from Prince Edward Island

Over the past two or three decades,  the members of the Mi’kmaq Confederacy of Prince Edward Island were concerned because the American eel in the St. Lawrence River was known to be a source of contaminants of concern. The purpose of this study was to determine if the levels of mercury, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and chromium in eel muscle were within acceptable limits, and to document any variation in concentrations over nine weeks in the Malpeque Bay of Prince Edward Island.

The project team administered a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire to determine rates of eel consumption by two nearby First Nations communities. In addition, eels were sampled from Malpeque Bay to measure levels of contaminants.

This study showed levels of the five heavy metals in eel muscle were within acceptable limits. The food frequency questionnaire revealed eel consumption by the Lennox Island and Abegweit First Nations communities was generally low. Based on these data, the study concluded the human health risk from exposure to the measured contaminants remained low.