Lindeberg Carola, Bindler Richard, Bigler Christian, Rosén Peter, Renberg Ingemar
Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Sweden.
Ambio. 2007 Jul;36(5):401-5. doi: 10.1579/0044-7447(2007)36[401:mptisl]2.0.co;2.
Despite many years of research about mercury pollution, data concerning high-latitude regions of Europe are limited, particularly studies of long-term temporal trends. It is not clear whether the mercury load at high latitudes follows the recent decreasing trends in European mercury emissions or whether the load is still high because of continuing global emissions. In this study we use sediments from 12 lakes, located above the Arctic Circle in the Swedish mountains, to assess the past and recent mercury pollution situation, especially for the last 200 y. The mercury load increased clearly in sediment deposited from the late 19th or early 20th century to a peak between 1960 and 1990. This peak represents an enrichment of 1.4 to 4.2 times over background concentrations. This enrichment is comparable with enrichments in sediments from lower latitudes as well as other Arctic regions. Since the 1990s mercury concentration has declined in 8 of the 12 lakes, i.e., similar to emission trends in Europe.
尽管对汞污染已开展了多年研究，但有关欧洲高纬度地区的数据有限，尤其是长期时间趋势的研究。目前尚不清楚高纬度地区的汞负荷是否遵循欧洲汞排放近期的下降趋势，或者由于全球排放持续，汞负荷是否仍然很高。在本研究中，我们使用了位于瑞典山区北极圈以北12个湖泊的沉积物，来评估过去和近期的汞污染状况，特别是过去200年的情况。从19世纪末或20世纪初沉积的沉积物到1960年至1990年之间的峰值，汞负荷明显增加。这个峰值代表了比背景浓度高出1.4至4.2倍的富集。这种富集与低纬度地区以及其他北极地区沉积物中的富集程度相当。自20世纪90年代以来，12个湖泊中有8个湖泊的汞浓度有所下降，即与欧洲的排放趋势相似。
