RIVERWOOD FISH KILL

RIVERWOOD FISH
KILL
Statement 1
Heavy Metals are in the water.
What are heavy metals?
Heavy metals are a subset of metals that have metallic properties. Heavy metals
are dangerous in high enough levels and can be very toxic to living organisms.
Some heavy metals are toxic overall like lead, mercury or plutonium.
Lead and Mercury as been found in the river so heavy metal poisoning is one of
the causes of the fish kill.
Heavy metals can cause impairment of neurological function. If something eats a
fish contaminated with heavy metals, the organism that eats the fish will be
poisoned.
Statement 2
Heavy metal poisoning is the cause of the fish kill
The heavy metals Lead, Mercury and Cadmium are in the water, BUT are
in the water at dangerous levels.
What is pH?
The pH or the scale of which measures if a substance is acidic or basic. 7 is the neutral level
of pH. Numbers higher than 7 are basic and numbers lower than 7 or acidic. The river’s pH
level in September was 1.3 and shows that the water was very acidic. Heavy metals are a
potential cause of low pH which further shows that heavy metals are the cause of the fish kill
and that the miners, the only people that have access to heavy metals as a by product of their
industry, are held responsible for the fish kill.
pH
Sept.7
Sept.6
Sept.5
Sept.4
Sept.3
Sept.2
Sept.1
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
pH
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Sept.1
Sept.2
Sept.3
Sept.4
Sept.5
Sept.6
Sept.7
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
Lead(Micrograms per Liter)
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Lead(Micrograms per Liter)
Sept. 1
Sept. 2
Sept. 3
Sept. 4
Sept. 5
Sept. 6
Sept. 7
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
Mercury Levels
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
Mercury (micrograms per Liter)
2.5
Sept.1
Sept.2
Sept.3
Sept.4
Sept.5
Sept.6
Sept.7
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
Cadmium Levels
4.5
4
3.5
3
Cadmium(Micrograms per Liter)
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Statement 3
WHO DID’T DO IT AND WHY
IT WAS NOT THE FARMERS FAULT
The farmers are the only people with access to pesticides. Pesticides were
not in the water during September. The rainfall was very low for
September and the pesticides wouldn’t be able to flow into the river.
More importantly the dead fish didn’t have any levels of pesticides in
them.
Sept. 1
Sept. 2
Sept. 3
Sept. 4
Sept. 5
Sept. 6
Sept. 7
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
Pesticide Levels
0.012
0.01
0.008
0.006
Pesticide (mg/L)
0.004
0.002
0
Statement 4
Heavy metals are the cause, but is it only the miner’s fault?
Heavy metals are the cause, yes, but throughout the mining company’s history, they have
dumped heavy metals in the past BUT that was the 30’s BEFORE we knew the dangers of
heavy metals. Now the metals will sink down to the bottom of the river where fish won’t be
able to go. So how did heavy metals kill the fish when the fish can’t get them. There’s only
one cause, a large outburst of water. Only one group can do that, the power company. When
the damn opened, massive amounts of water would go into the Snake River and would mix
with the existing river. Anything settled on the bottom of the river would come up, metals
included. The introduction of heavy metals via a large rush of water would eventually poison
the fish causing them to die.
In the end, the power company is also for playing a part in
the destruction of the ecosystem.
Statement 5
The final decision
Our final decision based on all of the graphs and facts compiled throughout the week is that
the mining company AND the power company are responsible for the fish kill. Both parties
will need to pay reparations to the town and will be the ones who will be using their money
to clean the water by using a filtration system that monitors the water. They can also use
chelation and ultra filtration. Now the a government linked company can sell you the
system and give a 10% discount ,but the water can also be fixed through the hydrologic cycle.
The systems will cost about $35,000, but the power company and the mining company will
need to pay for it in order to fix the water. Both will need to pay ½ of $35,000.
What is Chelation?
It’s a process by which a chemical is added to the water and the toxins stick to the
chemical. It will work faster than the hydrologic cycle, but is more expensive.