Paper Title
Evaluation of Mercury (Hg) Level in Water from Watershed of the Kowsar Dam

Abstract
Among the inorganic contaminants of the river water, heavy metals are getting importance for their non-degradable nature and often accumulate through tropic level causing a deleterious biological effect .The Kowsar dam supply water for different usages such as drinking, industrial, agricultural and aquaculture farms usages and located next to the city of Dehdashat in Kohgiluye and Boyerahmad province in southern Iran. There are some towns and villages on the Kowsar dam watersheds, which Dehdasht and Choram are the most important and populated cities in this area. The study was undertaken to assess the status of water quality in the urban areas of the Kowsar dam. A total of 28 water samples were collected from 6 stations on surface water and 1 station from groundwater on the watershed of the Kowsar dam. All the samples were analyzed for Hg concentration using standard procedures. The results were compared with other national and international standards. Among the analyzed samples, as the maximum value of Hg (0.001 mg/L) was observed on the station 5 at the Spring 2010, all the samples analyzed were within the maximum admissible limits by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, EU, WHO, New Zealand , Australian, Iranian, and the Indian standards. In general results of the present study have shown that Hg mean values of stations No. 1 and 2 with 0.0009 and 0.0005mg/L respectively are higher than the other stations. Although Hg level of all samples and stations have had normal values but this is an indication of pollution potential and hazards because of human activity and waste water of towns in the areas, which can effect on human health implications in future. This research, therefore, recommends the government and other responsible authorities to take suitable improving measures in the Kowsar dam watersheds. Keywords: Kowsar Dam, Drinking Water Quality, Mercury (Hg), Maximum Admissible Limit, World Health Organization,