Mercury and methylmercury export in relation to DOC quality in upland landscapes, northeastern USA
James B. Shanley, Charles T. Driscoll, Jr., George R. Aiken, Ann Chalmers, Janet Towse and Jason Dittman
Contact Info:
James B. Shanley
U.S. Geological Survey
P.O. Box 628
Montpelier, VT 05601
phone: (802) 828-4466
email: jshanley@usgs.gov
Date Prepared: December 2006
Summary
Pervasive mercury (Hg) contamination poses a threat to human health through fish consumption, even in remote areas of northeastern USA. A central policy question in the debate over regulation of Hg is whether reductions in emissions will translate directly into reductions of Hg in fish. Most Hg deposited on the terrestrial landscape is retained in organic soils. Thus, the soil harbors a large store of Hg from the past century of industrial emissions that may continue to leak Hg into streams (and fish) regardless of future trends in Hg emissions. We are investigating the fate of this stored Hg by quantifying stream transport of Hg and the interactions of dissolved and particulate organic matter with Hg in streamwater. We hypothesize that the landscape characteristics that control the production and mobility of organic matter will likewise control the mobility of Hg.
