Methylmercury Cycling in High Arctic Wetland Ponds: Controls on Sedimentary Production

Methylmercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin that has been demonstrated to biomagnify in Arctic freshwater foodwebs to levels that may be of concern to Inuit peoples subsisting on freshwater fish, for example. The key process initiating the bioaccumulation and biomagnification of MeHg in foodwebs is the methylation of inorganic Hg­(II) to form MeHg, and ultimately how much MeHg enters foodwebs is controlled by the production and availability of MeHg in a particular water body. We used isotopically enriched Hg stable isotope tracers in sediment core incubations to measure potential rates of Hg­(II) methylation and investigate the controls on MeHg production in High Arctic wetland ponds in the Lake Hazen region of northern Ellesmere Island (Nunavut, Canada). We show here that MeHg concentrations in sediments are primarily controlled by the sediment methylation potential and the quantity of Hg­(II) available for methylation, but not by sediment demethylation potential. Furthermore, MeHg concentrations in pond waters are controlled by MeHg production in sediments, overall anaerobic microbial activity, and photodemethylation in the water column

Determination of Monomethylmercury and Dimethylmercury in the Arctic Marine Boundary Layer

Our understanding of the biogeochemical cycling of monomethylmercury (MMHg) in the Arctic is incomplete because atmospheric sources and sinks of MMHg are still unclear. We sampled air in the Canadian Arctic marine boundary layer to quantify, for the first time, atmospheric concentrations of methylated Hg species (both MMHg and dimethylmercury (DMHg)), and, estimate the importance of atmospheric deposition as a source of MMHg to Arctic land- and sea-scapes. Overall atmospheric MMHg and DMHg concentrations (mean ± SD) were 2.9 ± 3.6 and 3.8 ± 3.1 (<i>n</i> = 37) pg m⁻³, respectively. Concentrations of methylated Hg species in the marine boundary layer varied significantly among our sites, with a predominance of MMHg over Hudson Bay (HB), and DMHg over Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) waters. We concluded that DMHg is of marine origin and that primary production rate and sea-ice cover are major drivers of its concentration in the Canadian Arctic marine boundary layer. Summer wet deposition rates of atmospheric MMHg, likely to be the product of DMHg degradation in the atmosphere, were estimated at 188 ± 117.5 ng m^–2 and 37 ± 21.7 ng m^–2 for HB and CAA, respectively, sustaining MMHg concentrations available for biomagnification in the pelagic food web

Methylmercury Cycling in High Arctic Wetland Ponds: Sources and Sinks

The sources of methylmercury (MeHg; the toxic form of mercury that is biomagnified through foodwebs) to Arctic freshwater organisms have not been clearly identified. We used a mass balance approach to quantify MeHg production in two wetland ponds in the Lake Hazen region of northern Ellesmere Island, NU, in the Canadian High Arctic and to evaluate the importance of these systems as sources of MeHg to Arctic foodwebs. We show that internal production (1.8–40 ng MeHg m^–2 d^–1) is a much larger source of MeHg than external inputs from direct atmospheric deposition (0.029–0.051 ng MeHg m^–2 d^–1), as expected. Furthermore, MeHg cycling in these systems is dominated by Hg­(II) methylation and MeHg photodemethylation (2.0–33 ng MeHg m^–2 d^–1), which is a sink for a large proportion of the MeHg produced by Hg­(II) methylation in these ponds. We also show that MeHg production in the two study ponds is comparable to what has previously been measured in numerous more southerly systems known to be important MeHg sources, such as temperate wetlands and lakes, demonstrating that wetland ponds in the High Arctic are important sources of MeHg to local aquatic foodwebs

Sources of Methylmercury to Snowpacks of the Alberta Oil Sands Region: A Study of In Situ Methylation and Particulates

Snowpacks in the Alberta Oil Sands Region (AOSR) of Canada contain elevated loadings of methylmercury (MeHg; a neurotoxin that biomagnifies through foodwebs) due to oil sands related activities. At sites ranging from 0 to 134 km from the major AOSR upgrading facilities, we examined sources of MeHg by quantifying potential rates of MeHg production in snowpacks and melted snow using mercury stable isotope tracer experiments, as well as quantifying concentrations of MeHg on particles in snowpacks (pMeHg). At four sites, methylation rate constants were low in snowpacks (<i>k</i>_m = 0.001–0.004 d^–1) and nondetectable in melted snow, except at one site (<i>k</i>_m = 0.0007 d^–1). The ratio of methylation to demethylation varied between 0.3 and 1.5, suggesting that the two processes are in balance and that in situ production is unlikely an important net source of MeHg to AOSR snowpacks. pMeHg concentrations increased linearly with distance from the upgraders (R² = 0.71, <i>p</i> < 0.0001); however, snowpack total particle and pMeHg loadings decreased exponentially over this same distance (R² = 0.49, <i>p</i> = 0.0002; R² = 0.56, <i>p</i> < 0.0001). Thus, at near-field sites, total MeHg loadings in snowpacks were high due to high particle loadings, even though particles originating from industrial activities were not MeHg rich compared to those at remote sites. More research is required to identify the industrial sources of snowpack particles in the AOSR

Atmospheric Deposition of Mercury and Methylmercury to Landscapes and Waterbodies of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region

Atmospheric deposition of metals originating from a variety of sources, including bitumen upgrading facilities and blowing dusts from landscape disturbances, is of concern in the Athabasca oil sands region of northern Alberta, Canada. Mercury (Hg) is of particular interest as methylmercury (MeHg), a neurotoxin which bioaccumulates through foodwebs, can reach levels in fish and wildlife that may pose health risks to human consumers. We used spring-time sampling of the accumulated snowpack at sites located varying distances from the major developments to estimate winter 2012 Hg loadings to a ∼20 000 km² area of the Athabasca oil sands region. Total Hg (THg; all forms of Hg in a sample) loads were predominantly particulate-bound (79 ± 12%) and increased with proximity to major developments, reaching up to 1000 ng m^–2. MeHg loads increased in a similar fashion, reaching up to 19 ng m^–2 and suggesting that oil sands developments are a direct source of MeHg to local landscapes and water bodies. Deposition maps, created by interpolation of measured Hg loads using geostatistical software, demonstrated that deposition resembled a bullseye pattern on the landscape, with areas of maximum THg and MeHg loadings located primarily between the Muskeg and Steepbank rivers. Snowpack concentrations of THg and MeHg were significantly correlated (<i>r</i> = 0.45–0.88, <i>p</i> < 0.01) with numerous parameters, including total suspended solids (TSS), metals known to be emitted in high quantities from the upgraders (vanadium, nickel, and zinc), and crustal elements (aluminum, iron, and lanthanum), which were also elevated in this region. Our results suggest that at snowmelt, a complex mixture of chemicals enters aquatic ecosystems that could impact biological communities of the oil sands region