Mercury in components of ecosystems of Western Spitsbergen fijord in summer, 2017

Abstract

The total content of mercury was studied in marine water, sediments and benthic organisms in Billefjord, Isfjord and Gronfjord (Western Spitsbergen) in 2017. The samples were collected between 21 and 24 of July 2017 on-board RV “Dalnie Zelentsy” of Murmansk Marine Biological Institute. Total mercury content was measured at chemical-analytical laboratory of the Russian Scientific Center on Spitsbergen in Barentsburg.Total mercury concentration in the water did not exceed 10 ng/l in all fjords. In the surface sediments the highest concentrations of total mercury were found in Isfjord (median 55 ng/g d.w.) while the Billefjord sediments were characterised by the lowest concentrations (median 10.4 ng/g d.w.). This fact might reflect the differences in water circulation and therefore sediment accumulation peculiarities.Total mercury data were obtained for benthic organisms of various feeding modes. Generally mercury levels were comparatively low (median 12.2 ng/g w.w.), however the highest concentrations were measured in the benthic fauna of Isfjord, specifically in polychaetes Maldania sarsi (max. 49.2 ng/g w.w.). Mercury accumulation in benthic organisms predominantly depended on their trophic level in the ecosystem and location in the fjord: benthic detritus feeders accumulate more mercury (median 25.0 ng/gw.w.).

Mercury in Frozen Quaternary Sediments of the Spitsbergen Archipelago

“…Of interest is a comparative analysis of the mercury content in the studied frozen Quaternary sediments of marine origin and its content in current sea bottom Hg, ng/g soils of Spitsbergen according to literature data. In (Lebedeva et al, 2018), the mercury content was measured in five samples of bottom soils of Grönfjord Bay; a range of values was obtained from 7.1 to 42.3 ng/g. In other fjords of Spitsbergen, the average values of the mercury content in bottom soils were 52 ng/g in Horsund, 30 ng/g in Viidefjord, 16 ng/g in Diksonfjord (Kim et al, 2020), and 22 ng/g in Kongsfjord (Jiang et al, 2011).…”

“…In the abovementioned sources, a detailed description of the temperatures, cryolithological structure, and composition of the water extract from 10 of the 15 wells, the studied materials of which served as the basis for writing this paper, can be found. What makes the area of Barentsburg a useful testing ground for research is both the high degree of its geocryological diversity and knowledge and the availability of information on the mercury content in modern bottom soils of the Grönfjord Bay, on the shore of which it is located (Lebedeva et al, 2018), and in the soils of the neighboring Adventdalen valley (Halbach et al, 2017). Earlier in Spitsbergen, the mercury content in the modern bottom soils of three more bays (Horsund, Vijdefjord, and Diksonfjord) was analyzed, and deglaciation of the archipelago was assumed to lead to increased removal of organic matter and associated mercury (Kim et al, 2020).…”