A 12th grader from Silistra discovered the element cadmium while studying the waters of the Danube River in a science and ecology competition. However, after research, it is clear that the increased cadmium concentration is not dangerous for the environment, BNT reported.
Murad Halvani was born in Lebanon, but chose to live and study in Bulgaria. As a keen ecologist, he conducts research on the water and sediment quality of the Danube River. Experts from the institute of the BAS and the eco-inspection in Ruse help him take samples and analyze them. However, the results did reveal the presence of cadmium.
“I received permission from RIOSV-Ruse to attend one of their hearings. With a Border Police boat, we entered the Danube River and took water samples for analysis from three points in the Silistren area. The results showed an increase in all metals. Above all, there is a higher concentration of cadmium,” said Murad Halvani.
“In the Silistra region there is no source that pollutes with cadmium, but in general in the European Union, as well as in Bulgaria, the cause of cadmium pollution is the fertilizers used in the EU,” said Yordanka Marinova, a chemist and ecology teacher.
To know the real picture of the heavy metal content in the Danube, stricter and regular monitoring by eco-inspectors is needed, says Murad.
“They carry out monthly monitoring of the waters of the Danube River and I would recommend such monitoring of the sediments as well, as it will also give a proper assessment of the river’s pollution and more rapid and adequate measures can be taken,” Murad Halwani said.
Cadmium is used in some rechargeable batteries. This is why the experts remind us not to throw them away indiscriminately, but to recycle them. According to doctors, increasing the amount of cadmium is dangerous for both nature and human health.
“It can affect many organs of the human body, starting from the excretory system, the musculoskeletal system, the digestive system, the liver, the nervous system. It causes great damage everywhere, naturally with the corresponding symptoms. Globally, every between 4,000 and 13,000 tons of cadmium are dissipated each year as waste, production waste or cadmium-containing waste. Given that we have been using it for more than 120 years, perhaps it is appropriate to carry out an in-depth analysis of the environment and above all of the soils”, commented Dr. Kamen Kozhuharov, director of KOC-Ruse.
With his research, Murad won a gold medal at the National Eco Competition. And his dream is to work in Bulgaria as a surgeon.
