Cadmium & compounds: Environmental effects
Description
In fresh water, cadmium toxicity is influenced by the hardness of the water, the softer the water the greater the toxicity. It has high short and long-term toxicity to aquatic life. No data are available on the short-term effects, or long term effects of cadmium on plants, birds, or land animals, excepting test animals, which did develop lung and testicle cancers. The same scarring of the lungs as found in humans will be present in very high doses in other mammals. Cadmium is highly persistent in the environment and will concentrate or bioaccumulate in aquatic animals.
Entering the environment
Industrial emissions of cadmium and or cadmium compounds can produce elevated, but still low-level concentrations in the atmosphere around the source. Motor vehicles may also produce elevated levels of cadmium in areas of higher traffic. Tobacco smoke is the primary source of cadmium indoors. Because of their short life expectancy in the atmosphere cadmium and its compounds are usually confined to the local area within which it is emitted.
Where it ends up
Cadmium acts like other particles when in the atmosphere and will be subject to deposition caused by rain or wind. The expected lifetime for particles in the atmosphere will be about 5 to 15 days. Some cadmium compounds are able to leach through soils into ground water. When cadmium compounds do bind to the sediments in water (rivers, lakes, bore water) they are less likely to be bioavailable.
Environmental guidelines
Australian Water Quality Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Waters: (ANZECC, 1992):
Fresh water: Maximum of 0.0002 to 0.002 mg/L (i.e. 0.0000002 to 0.000002 g/L)
Marine water: Maximum of 0.002 mg/L (i.e. 0.000002 g/L)
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