Variable Contributions of Mercury from Groundwater to a First-Order Urban Coastal Plain Stream in New Jersey, USA

Legacy source of mercury in an urban stream–wetland ecosystem in central North Carolina, USA

“…For example, Hg-contaminated soil in golf courses and Hg-contaminated fish in golf course lakes have been previously documented (Koirtyohann et al, 1974;Frank, 1981;Matthews et al, 1995), and instances of Hg-contaminated groundwater in a rapidly urbanizing New Jersey watershed have been linked to the use of Hg-fungicides in regions where agriculture was the primary land use (Barringer et al, 2013).…”

Effect on reclamation on mercury concentration in groundwater: a case study of Luboń Chemical Plant (Poznań, Poland)

“…The natural content of mercury in groundwater is difficult to calculate. Barringer et al (2013) estimated that the background value for the area of New Jersey is < 10 ng L − 1 . Szymczycha et al (2013) measured mercury concentrations in wells located by the Gulf of Gdańsk, in the southern part of the Baltic Sea, and obtained values of 0.51-1.15 ng L − 1 .…”

“…Nevertheless, most of the mercury in the environment comes from anthropogenic sources (Pacyna and Pacyna 2002;Zahir et al 2005;Wong et al 2006;Pacyna et al 2010). The main anthropogenic source of mercury in the environment, mostly in the atmosphere, is the burning of fossil fuels and municipal solid waste, as well as emissions from hospital incinerators (Zahir et al 2005;Kowalski et al 2012;Barringer et al 2013). Moreover, mercury is released to the environment from mining waste (extraction and processing of mercury and gold), from the production of metals, cement and caustic soda, during technological processes in chloralkali industry, from other industries such as production of paper, pharmaceuticals and chemicals (chemical fertilizers, mercury electrolysis, synthesis of plastics), electrical engineering (production of UV and fluorescent lamps, measuring devices), armaments, petrochemical industry, and from laboratory waste, sewage sludge, ashes and deposits from combustion, disposal sites, dental amalgams and cremation.…”

“…Anthropogenic mercury pollution is considered a global problem which may have consequences for human health, both immediate and longterm (Wang et al 2012(Wang et al , 2014De Simone et al 2014;Jang et al 2014;González-Fernández et al 2014;Chételat et al 2015). Mercury can be leached from soil into surface water or groundwater and pose a threat to human health, especially when these waters are used for consumption (Barringer et al 2010(Barringer et al , 2013González-Fernández et al 2014). The transformation of mercury and its transport from contaminated soil into surface water and groundwater depend on geological, hydrological and climatic processes, as well as on land use and soil properties and composition (Kabata-Pendias 2001;Kowalski et al 2007;Bollen et al 2008;Reis et al 2010;Bhagure and Mirgane 2011;González-Fernández et al 2014;Kowalski and Frankowski 2016).…”

“…The transformation of mercury and its transport from contaminated soil into surface water and groundwater depend on geological, hydrological and climatic processes, as well as on land use and soil properties and composition (Kabata-Pendias 2001;Kowalski et al 2007;Bollen et al 2008;Reis et al 2010;Bhagure and Mirgane 2011;González-Fernández et al 2014;Kowalski and Frankowski 2016). However, not all mercury that contaminates soil can migrate into groundwater, because soil has a buffering capacity and thus can adsorb contaminants (Kowalski et al 2007;Barringer et al 2013;González-Fernández et al 2014). In recent years, a number of studies have focused on the problem of soil and groundwater contamination with mercury as a result of rapid industrialization and urbanization (Kortatsi 2007;Bollen et al 2008;Barringer et al 2010Barringer et al , 2013Bhagure and Mirgane 2011;Wu and Cao 2010;González-Fernández et al 2014).…”