Horvat M, Covelli S, Faganeli J, Logar M, Mandić V, Rajar R, Sirca A, Zagar D
Department of Environmental Sciences, Jozef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Sci Total Environ. 1999 Sep 30;237-238:43-56. doi: 10.1016/s0048-9697(99)00123-0.
Some general facts, uncertainties and gaps in current knowledge of Hg cycling in coastal and oceanic environments are given. As a case study the Gulf of Trieste is chosen. The Gulf is subject to substantial Hg pollution, originating from the Soca river, that drains the cinnabar deposits of the world's second largest Hg mining area, Idrija, Slovenia. The Gulf belongs to one of the most polluted areas in the Mediterranean. Apart from Hg problems, the Gulf is also a subject to industrial and sewage pollution. Due to deteriorating water quality in the Gulf there is a great concern that Hg can be remobilized from sediments to the water column as well as enhance methylation rates which may consequently increase already elevated Hg levels in aquatic organisms. The paper presents data from a recent study which aims to assess the extent of contamination of the Gulf of Trieste after the closure of the Hg mine. Mercury and methylmercury were measured in various environmental compartments (estuarine and marine waters, sediments, and organisms) during the period 1995-1997. Data obtained show that even 10 years after closure of the Hg mine, Hg concentrations in river sediments and water are still very high and did not show the expected decrease of Hg in the Gulf of Trieste. A provisional annual mercury mass balance was established for the Gulf of Trieste showing that the major source of inorganic mercury is still the River Soca (Isonzo) while the major source of methylmercury is the bottom sediment of the Gulf.
文中给出了沿海和海洋环境中汞循环的一些一般事实、不确定性和当前知识空白。作为案例研究，选择了的里雅斯特湾。该海湾受到大量汞污染，其源头是索卡河，该河流经世界第二大汞矿区——斯洛文尼亚伊德里亚的朱砂矿。该海湾属于地中海污染最严重的地区之一。除了汞问题，该海湾还受到工业和污水污染。由于海湾水质恶化，人们非常担心汞会从沉积物中重新释放到水柱中，同时甲基化速率可能会提高，从而可能进一步增加水生生物中已经升高的汞含量。本文介绍了一项近期研究的数据，该研究旨在评估汞矿关闭后里雅斯特湾的污染程度。在1995 - 1997年期间，对不同环境介质（河口和海水、沉积物及生物）中的汞和甲基汞进行了测量。获得的数据表明，即使在汞矿关闭10年后，河流沉积物和水中的汞浓度仍然很高，的里雅斯特湾的汞含量并未如预期那样下降。为的里雅斯特湾建立了一个临时年度汞质量平衡模型，结果表明无机汞的主要来源仍然是索卡河（伊松佐河），而甲基汞的主要来源是海湾底部的沉积物。
