Distribution pattern of mercury in northern Barents Sea and Eurasian Basin surface sediment

• Published in: Marine Pollution Bulletin
• Main Authors: Kohler, Stephen, G, Kull, Laura, M, Heimbürger-Boavida, Lars-Eric, Ricardo de Freitas, Thaise, Sanchez, Nicolas, Ndungu, Kuria, Ardelan, Murat, V
• Other Authors: Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim (NTNU), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Institut méditerranéen d'océanologie (MIO), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Toulon (UTLN)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2022
• Subjects: [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; [SDU]Sciences of the Universe [physics]; Arctic; Barents Sea
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03834479; https://hal.science/hal-03834479/document; https://hal.science/hal-03834479/file/1-s2.0-S0025326X22009547-main.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114272

International audience Marine sediment is a significant sink for the global pollutant mercury. In a rapidly changing Arctic region, mercury (Hg) bioaccumulation in the marine ecosystem remains a prominent environmental issue. Here, we report surface sediment (0-2 cm) concentrations of Hg and other toxic elements of interest (Cr, Ni, Zn, Cu, As, Cd, Pb) in the northern Barents Sea and Eurasian Basin. We observed average Hg concentrations of 65 ± 23 ng/g with the highest concentration of 116 ng/g in the Eurasian Basin. Our calculated enrichment factors suggest low anthropogenic enrichment for mercury, chromium, nickel, and copper. Mercury and trace element geographic patterns are best explained by the origin and transportation of fine grain sediment towards the Eurasian Basin, with scavenging by both particulate organic carbon and metal oxides as significant delivery mechanisms.