Arctic Centre, University of Groningen, Aweg 30, 9718, CW, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Wageningen Marine Research, P.O. Box 77, 4400 AB, Yerseke, The Netherlands.
Environ Monit Assess. 2021 Jul 21;193(8):499. doi: 10.1007/s10661-021-09287-5.
Mercury in the Arctic originates from emissions and releases at lower latitudes and, to a lesser extent, from local and regional sources. The relationship between mercury (Hg) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in sediment can be applied as an indicator of the mercury source. This research examines the Hg contamination gradient from a land-based coal mine to the surrounding coastal environment to quantify the impact of local sources. Total mercury and PAH (ΣPAH) were measured in terrestrial and marine sediments as well as in marine biota. Samples were collected at the mine and two reference sites. Mercury and ΣPAH concentrations in samples collected at the mine site were significantly higher than those at the reference sites. This was also found in the biota samples, although less pronounced. This work addresses the complexities of interpreting data concerning very low contaminant levels in a relatively pristine environment. A clear correlation between PAH and Hg concentration in sediment was found, although a large number of samples had levels below detection limits. PAH profiles, hierarchical clustering, and molecular diagnostic ratios provided further insight into the origin of PAHs and Hg, showing that signatures in sediments from the nearest reference site were more similar to the mine, which was not the case for the other reference site. The observed exposure radius from the mine was small and diluted from land to water to marine biota. Due to low contamination levels and variable PAH profiles, marine biota was less suitable for tracing the exposure radius for this local land-based Hg source. With an expected increase in mobility and availability of contaminants in the warming Arctic, changes in input of PAHs and Hg from land-based sources to the marine system need close monitoring.
汞在北极地区的来源主要是在低纬度地区的排放和释放，以及在较小程度上来自当地和区域的来源。汞 (Hg) 与沉积物中多环芳烃 (PAHs) 的关系可用作汞来源的指标。本研究考察了从陆基煤矿到周围沿海环境的汞污染梯度，以量化当地来源的影响。在陆地和海洋沉积物以及海洋生物群中测量了总汞和多环芳烃 (ΣPAH)。在矿区和两个对照点采集了样品。矿区采集的样品中的汞和 ΣPAH 浓度明显高于对照点的浓度。在生物群样本中也发现了这种情况，尽管不太明显。本工作解决了在相对原始环境中解释非常低污染物水平数据的复杂性。发现沉积物中 PAH 和 Hg 浓度之间存在明显的相关性，尽管大量样品的水平低于检测限。PAH 分布、层次聚类和分子诊断比提供了对 PAHs 和 Hg 来源的进一步了解，表明来自最近的对照点的沉积物特征与矿区更为相似，而不是其他对照点。从矿区观察到的暴露半径较小，从陆地到水到海洋生物群逐渐稀释。由于污染水平较低和 PAH 分布的变化，海洋生物群不太适合追踪这种当地陆基 Hg 来源的暴露半径。随着北极变暖导致污染物的流动性和可用性增加，需要密切监测来自陆基源的 PAHs 和 Hg 对海洋系统的输入变化。
