Mercury Policy and Science in Northeastern North America: The Mercury Action Plan of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers

Smith, C. Mark; Trip, Luke

doi:10.1007/s10646-004-6257-y

Cited by 18 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Gathering such large amounts of data without a program such as Bird Studies Canada's CLLS would not have been possible, which highlights the utility of using citizen science programs to monitor wildlife as indicators of environmental stress. The results support further action to abate emissions of mercury and the harmful components of acid precipitation throughout North America and globally (Morrison et al 2004, Smith and Trip 2005, Cain et al 2011). …”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Common Loon Reproductive Success in Canada: the West is Best but Not for Long

Tozer¹,

Falconer²,

Badzinski³

2013

ACE

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ABSTRACT. Reproductive success of Common Loons (Gavia immer) is a powerful indicator of aquatic ecosystem health, especially in relation to mercury and acid precipitation. We examined relationships between Common Loon reproductive success and longitude, year, lake area, and pH across southern Canada using data collected from 1992 to 2010 by participants in Bird Studies Canada's Canadian Lakes Loon Survey. Our goal was to indirectly describe the health of lakes in southern Canada with respect to mercury and acid precipitation. The overall model-predicted number of six-week-old young per pair per year was 0.59 (95% confidence limits: 0.56-0.62). Six-week-old young per pair per year decreased by 0.19 from west-to-east (−127° to −52° longitude), decreased by 0.14 between 1992 and 2010, increased by 0.22 as lake area increased from 10 to 3000 ha, and increased by 0.43 as acidity decreased from pH 5 to 9. The relationships were likely linked to acid-and temperature-mediated exposure to methylmercury and/or acid-induced reductions in forage fish. The temporal decrease

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 63%

Common Loon Reproductive Success in Canada: the West is Best but Not for Long

Tozer¹,

Falconer²,

Badzinski³

2013

ACE

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“…A similar resolution was agreed upon in 2010 by the Great Lakes Commission to promote comprehensive Hg monitoring, research and control efforts. The New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers also support extensive Hg monitoring to improve scientific understanding of Hg sources, fate and impacts as part of their Mercury Action Plan (Smith and Trip 2005).…”

Section: Near-term Steps and Future Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

MercNet: a national monitoring network to assess responses to changing mercury emissions in the United States

Schmeltz¹,

Evers

Driscoll

et al. 2011

Ecotoxicology

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A partnership of federal and state agencies, tribes, industry, and scientists from academic research and environmental organizations is establishing a national, policy-relevant mercury monitoring network, called MercNet, to address key questions concerning changes in anthropogenic mercury emissions and deposition, associated linkages to ecosystem effects, and recovery from mercury contamination. This network would quantify mercury in the atmosphere, land, water, and biota in terrestrial, freshwater, and coastal ecosystems to provide a national scientific capability for evaluating the benefits and effectiveness of emission controls. Program development began with two workshops, convened to establish network goals, to select key indicators for monitoring, to propose a geographic network of monitoring sites, and to design a monitoring plan. MercNet relies strongly on multi-institutional partnerships to secure the capabilities and comprehensive data that are needed to develop, calibrate, and refine predictive mercury models and to guide effective management. Ongoing collaborative efforts include the: (1) development of regional multi-media databases on mercury in the Laurentian Great Lakes, northeastern United States, and eastern Canada; (2) syntheses and reporting of these data for the scientific and policy communities; and (3) evaluation of potential monitoring sites. The MercNet approach could be applied to the development of other monitoring programs, such as emerging efforts to monitor and assess global mercury emission controls.

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“…Federal law caught up with the states in 1996 (Sznopek and Goonan 2000). Building on these actions, all of the Northeast states and many others have adopted comprehensive mercury products legislation and regulations (Smith and Trip 2005).…”

Section: Providing a Good Examplementioning

confidence: 99%

Mercury policy in the Great Lakes states: past successes and future opportunities

2011

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While mercury (Hg) releases to air and water within the Great Lakes states have declined significantly, concentrations of mercury in fish remain a cause for concern regarding human and ecosystem health in the Great Lakes Basin. This paper assesses the priority that Hg source reduction ought to have in relation to some other environmental concerns, and explores the relative costs of various Hg reduction policies. Long-range transport of atmospheric mercury creates a collective action problem for states, since most of the mercury emitted within any given state deposits outside that state's borders, and since most of the mercury deposited within a state originated outside that state. This paper discusses some of the mechanisms that policy makers in the Great Lakes states employed to get beyond the collective action problem, including: providing an example for others to follow; using cross-jurisdiction cooperation to leverage the benefits of leadership on Hg reduction and control; and, promoting voluntary actions. Recommendations for future opportunities include: focusing reduction efforts on sources with the highest total mass of emissions rather than solely focusing on reduction of local deposition and utilizing all tools available in the clean air and clean water acts.

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Mercury Policy and Science in Northeastern North America: The Mercury Action Plan of the New England Governors and Eastern Canadian Premiers

Cited by 18 publications

References 12 publications

Common Loon Reproductive Success in Canada: the West is Best but Not for Long

Common Loon Reproductive Success in Canada: the West is Best but Not for Long

MercNet: a national monitoring network to assess responses to changing mercury emissions in the United States

Mercury policy in the Great Lakes states: past successes and future opportunities

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