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Impact of toxins
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Mercury is quite mobile in the natural environment, and easily
finds its way into water, soil, plants and animals. This is certainly true
in the lower Carson River drainage. Fish within the drainage have toxic levels
of mercury, and most people avoid eating them. The Environmental Protection
Agency has designated the area a Superfund site, and it has been the focus
of that agency's study for a number of years.
Removal of the wastes as a geologic occurrance
Because the scale of impact along the Carson River is so large, natural
detoxification will occur over the eons by subsequent sedimentation, dilution
and diffusion. Man will have little or no effect to detoxifying the sediments
along the Carson River because the job would prove insurmountable. The
presence of toxic wastes will certainly be recorded in the accumulation
of sediments at the river's termination at the Carson Sink. Future geologists
100,000 years from now will find a curious sand and clay layer rich in gold
silver, mercury, arsenic and other elements derived from the Comstock.
This layer will have a sharp basal contact and will defuse upwards into normal
sedimentation sequences. Indeed, the Carson Sink is the ultimate tailings
pond for the Comstock. Ironically this is also the site of an amazing population
of both migrating and non-migrating water fowl.
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Impact of toxins
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