Water Quality | Mercury

Mercury Research

Research pertaining to mercury is taking place at a number of institutions across North America.

METAALICUS (Mercury Experiment to Assess Atmospheric Loading in Canada and the U.S.)
A whole-ecosystem experiment in which mercury inputs to a headwater lake and its watershed will be increased experimentally.

University of Connecticut Team Hg
Group of scientists and students pursuing fundamental research into the biogeochemistry of mercury. Research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of mercury biological and chemical transformation and movement through the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, and surficial sediments.

University of Toronto at Mississauga—Dr. Brian Branfireun
Research focuses on hydrology and biogeochemistry of wetlands and mercury cycling in the environment. Projects include Hydrological Connectivity and Peatland Methylmercury Production and Reservoir Water Level Fluctuation and Methylmercury Cycling.

University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Chesapeake Biological Library—Dr. Robert Mason
Research focuses on mercury cycling in aquatic ecosystems, including the METAALICUS project.

University of Wisconsin Mercury Research Group
Projects include: METAALICUS, Watershed Influence on Transport, Fate, and Bioavailability of Mercury in Lake Superior; Impacts of Reservoir Creation on Methyl Mercury Production; An Investigation of Elevated Fish Mercury Levels in Isle Royale National Park, Aquatic Cycling of Mercury in Florida Everglades (ACME), and Methyl Mercury in Atmospheric Deposition in the Upper Midwest.

Biodiversity Research Institute – Northern States Research Cooperative Mercury Research Group
The purpose of this study is to document the extent of mercury distribution in northeastern North American surface waters, sediments, and key biota and to relate that distribution to depositional gradients, land cover, and topography, as well as land use.

For more information about mercury, contact Susy King, our mercury coordinator.