A local conservation authority says it is looking to get to the cause of a concerning find in Georgian Bay waters. Georgian Bay Forever says, despite a decline in regional emissions, mercury remains a persistent threat to the water system and fish living in it. According to the conservation organization, when mercury accumulates, bacteria in the environment begin to produce neurotoxic methylmercury. The study is being carried out by a team led by Ben Peterson, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee in the School of Freshwater Sciences. According to the conservation authority, the study aims to “characterize where in Georgian Bay this toxic (methylmercury) is produced.” An additional goal of the study will be to examine the presence of the Dreissenid mussel. The mollusc is considered an invasive species by the organization. The organization says the mussel has “fundamentally altered the biogeochemistry and aquatic ecology of these systems due to benthification, the shift from a pelagic (open water)-based food web to a benthic (near sediment)-based food web.
