Heavy metal levels in fish caught and processed at Lavender-Hill, Accra

This study was conducted to determine the presence and concentration of heavy metals Pb, Cd, Cr, and As, in fresh and dry herrings (Clupea harengus), and fresh sole fish (Cynoflossus senegalensis), from the selected site, Lavender Hill, Accra, Ghana using VARIAN AA240 FS-Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS), The levels of heavy metals by dry weight in mg/kg found in these fishes ranged from 1.57 to 3.64 for Pb, 0.33 to 0.47 for Cd, 0.88 to 1.04 for Cr, and 1.01 to 1.11 for As respectively. The results of this study show that the concentrations of Pb, Cd, Cr, were relatively high. Arsenic, with values between 1.01 to 1.11 mg/kg was lower when compared to the standard level of heavy metals adopted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA-407), It was concluded that consuming fish caught and processed in the Lavendar Hill area of Accra is not safe and represents a potential health risk to consumers of fish caught there as a result of bioaccumulation over a long period in consumers.