Toxicity tests conducted by three departments under three different ministries all showed high mercury accumulation in fish in water resources near an industrial estate in Prachin Buri province.
The source of the mercury contamination has, however, not yet been established, said Chumphol Chawapraphanant, a deputy director-general of the Department of Industrial Works, the fourth agency taking part in the investigation.
The Industry Ministry's Department of Pollution Control (DPC), the last agency to conduct the test, announced yesterday that its tests, conducted twice, had found that 17 kinds of fish out of 23 sampled contained high mercury levels, although they were within international safety levels under the Codex Alimentarius Commission.
The DPC also found mercury in fish in the Bang Pakong and Prachin Buri rivers, both of which travel through several provinces in addition to Prachin Buri. But DPC director-general Wichian Jungrungrueng did not give details over the level of mercury found or whether it was too toxic for human consumption.
