Current and past mercury distribution in air over the Idrija Hg mine region, Slovenia

Kotnik, Jože; Horvat, Milena; Dizdarević, Tatjana

doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2005.06.061

Cited by 88 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…In comparison with the Idrijca catchment of Idrija Hg mining area in Slovenia, which is the second largest Hg mine in the world, we found that the concentration of Hg 0 in ambient air in WMMA was similar with the values reported in Idrija in 1999 (Kotnik et al, 2005). However, the annual Hg deposition fluxes measured in WMMA were 2-45 and 12-200 folds higher for wet and dry deposition than those observed in Idrijca area, respectively (Kocman et al, 2011).…”

Section: Comparison With Deposition Flux Observed In Other Areassupporting

confidence: 40%

Spatial distribution of mercury deposition fluxes in Wanshan Hg mining area, Guizhou province, China

et al. 2012

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Abstract. The legacy of long-term mining activities in Wanshan mercury (Hg) mining area (WMMA), Guizhou, China including a series of environmental issues related to Hg pollution. The spatial distribution of gaseous elemental mercury (Hg 0 ) concentrations in ambient air were monitored using a mobile RA-915 + Zeeman Mercury Analyzer during daytime and night time in May 2010. The data imply that calcines and mine wastes piles located at Dashuixi and on-going artisanal Hg mining activities at Supeng were major sources of atmospheric mercury in WMMA. For a full year (May 2010 to May 2011), sampling of precipitation and throughfall were conducted on a weekly basis at three sites (Shenchong, Dashuixi, and Supeng) within WMMA. Hg in deposition was characterized by analysis of total Hg (THg) and dissolved Hg (DHg) concentrations. The corresponding data exhibit a high degree of variability, both temporarily and spatially. The volume-weighted mean THg concentrations in precipitation and throughfall samples were 502.6 ng l −1 and 977.8 ng l −1 at Shenchong, 814.1 ng l −1 and 3392.1 ng l −1 at Dashuixi, 7490.1 ng l −1 and 9641.5 ng l −1 at Supeng, respectively. THg was enhanced in throughfall compared to wet deposition samples by up to a factor of 7. The annual wet Hg deposition fluxes were 29.1, 68.8 and 593.1 µg m −2 yr −1 at Shenchong, Dashuixi and Supeng, respectively, while the annual dry Hg deposition fluxes were estimated to be 378.9, 2613.6 and 6178 µg m −2 yr −1 at these sites, respectively. Dry deposition played a dominant role in total atmospheric Hg deposition in WMMA since the dry deposition fluxes were 10.4-37.9 times higher than the wet deposition fluxes during the whole sample period. Our data showed that air deposition was still an important pathway of Hg contamination to the local environment in WMMA.

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Section: Comparison With Deposition Flux Observed In Other Areassupporting

confidence: 40%

Spatial distribution of mercury deposition fluxes in Wanshan Hg mining area, Guizhou province, China

et al. 2012

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“…Similar, Gosar et al (2006) observed relatively enriched cinnabar bound mercury in soils closer to the pollution sources in the town of Idrija, while at locations more distant from the pollution sources, soils were found to be enriched in non-cinnabar mercury forms (Gosar et al, 2006). Kotnik et al (2005) investigated the spatial distribution of Hg in the town of Idrija and measured mercury emission from topsoil using the in situ "flux chamber" technique. In their study, a strong influence of weather conditions, soil and air temperature, as well as air and soil Hg concentrations on Hg emission and distribution was observed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…In the Idrija ore deposit, Hg uniquely occurs as both as cinnabar (HgS∼70%) and to a relatively smaller extent in the form of native mercury (Hg 0 ∼30%). The distribution of Hg in this area in various environmental compartments has been extensively studied in the past (Grönlund et al, 2005;Horvat et al, 2002;Hines et al, 2006;Biester et al, 2002;Gosar et al, 2006;Žižek et al, 2007;Kotnik et al, 2005). Mercury fractionation study of contaminated soils in the town of Idrija performed by Kocman et al (2004) indicated cinnabar as the predominant Hg fraction in these soils, especially in coarse grained alluvial soils where on average it constituted more than 80% of total Hg.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A laboratory based experimental study of mercury emission from contaminated soils in the River Idrijca catchment

Kocman

Horvat

2010

Atmos. Chem. Phys.

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Abstract.Results obtained by a laboratory flux measurement system (LFMS) focused on investigating the kinetics of the mercury emission flux (MEF) from contaminated soils of the Idrija Hg-mine region, Slovenia are presented. Representative soil samples with respect to total Hg concentrations (4-417 µg g −1 ) and land cover (forest, meadow and alluvial soil) alongside the River Idrijca were analysed to determine the variation in MEF versus distance from the source, regulating three major environmental parameters comprising soil temperature, soil moisture and solar radiation. MEFs ranged from less than 2 to 530 ng m −2 h −1 , with the highest emissions from contaminated alluvial soils and soils near the mining district in the town of Idrija. A significant decrease of MEF was then observed with increasing distance from these sites. The results revealed a strong positive effect of all three parameters investigated on momentum MEF. The light-induced flux was shown to be independent of the soil temperature, while the soil aqueous phase seems to be responsible for recharging the pool of mercury in the soil available for both the light-and thermally-induced flux. The overall flux response to simulated environmental conditions depends greatly on the form of Hg in the soil. Higher activation energies are required for the overall process to occur in soils where insoluble cinnabar prevails compared to soils where more mobile Hg forms and forms available for transformation processes are dominant.

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“…Hg evasion from contaminated surfaces (Figs. 6 and 7) has been recognized as an important input contributing to the regional atmospheric Hg budget (Ferrara et al, 1998b;Kotnik et al, 2005). Hg 0 fluxes from contaminated point sources have been extensively investigated by using the LIDAR technique, which is by far the most effective experimental approach to spatially resolve the Hg 0 air-surface exchange at contaminated sites.…”

Section: Source and Sink Characteristics Of Natural Surfaces In The Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global observations and modeling of atmosphere–surface exchange of elemental mercury: a critical review

et al. 2016

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Abstract. Reliable quantification of air-surface fluxes of elemental Hg vapor (Hg 0 ) is crucial for understanding mercury (Hg) global biogeochemical cycles. There have been extensive measurements and modeling efforts devoted to estimating the exchange fluxes between the atmosphere and various surfaces (e.g., soil, canopies, water, snow, etc.) in the past three decades. However, large uncertainties remain due to the complexity of Hg 0 bidirectional exchange, limitations of flux quantification techniques and challenges in model parameterization. In this study, we provide a critical review on the state of science in the atmosphere-surface exchange of Hg 0 . Specifically, the advancement of flux quantification techniques, mechanisms in driving the air-surface Hg exchange and modeling efforts are presented. Due to the semi-volatile nature of Hg 0 and redox transformation of Hg in environmental media, Hg deposition and evasion are influenced by multiple environmental variables including seasonality, vegetative coverage and its life cycle, temperature, light, moisture, atmospheric turbulence and the presence of reactants (e.g., O 3 , radicals, etc.). However, the effects of these processes on flux have not been fundamentally and quantitatively determined, which limits the accuracy of flux modeling.We compile an up-to-date global observational flux database and discuss the implication of flux data on the global Hg budget. Mean Hg 0 fluxes obtained by micrometeorological measurements do not appear to be significantly greater than the fluxes measured by dynamic flux chamber methods over unpolluted surfaces (p = 0.16, one-tailed, Mann-Whitney U test). The spatiotemporal coverage of existing Hg 0 flux measurements is highly heterogeneous with large data gaps existing in multiple continents (Africa, South Asia, Middle East, South America and Australia). The magnitude of the evasion flux is strongly enhanced by human activities, particularly at contaminated sites. Hg 0 flux observations in East Asia are comparatively larger in magnitude than the rest of the world, suggesting substantial re-emission of previously deposited mercury from anthropogenic sources. The Hg 0 exchange over pristine surfaces (e.g., background soil and water) and vegetation needs better constraints for global analyses of the atmospheric Hg budget. The existing knowledge gap and the associated research needs for future measurements and modeling efforts for the air-surface exchange of Hg 0 are discussed.

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Current and past mercury distribution in air over the Idrija Hg mine region, Slovenia

Cited by 88 publications

References 38 publications

Spatial distribution of mercury deposition fluxes in Wanshan Hg mining area, Guizhou province, China

Spatial distribution of mercury deposition fluxes in Wanshan Hg mining area, Guizhou province, China

A laboratory based experimental study of mercury emission from contaminated soils in the River Idrijca catchment

Global observations and modeling of atmosphere–surface exchange of elemental mercury: a critical review

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