Historical records of mercury deposition in dated sediment cores reveal the impacts of the legacy and present-day human activities in Todos os Santos Bay, Northeast Brazil
Abstract
We determined depth profiles of total mercury (T-Hg) in six 210Pb-dated sediment cores from Todos os Santos Bay to reconstruct the history of anthropogenic Hg accumulation. We also assessed superficial sediments samples from five estuaries. T-Hg concentrations (5–3500 μg kg−1) presented a large spatial and temporal variability. T-Hg concentrations in Ribeira Bay increased up to 200-fold along time, whereas the fluxes of T-Hg are substantially higher (up to 10,000 fold) than present-day wet deposition for industrialized areas. Sedimentary records indicate that a chlor-alkali plant has been the main source of Hg pollution until the present, although the T-Hg records suggest that harbor, shrimp farming, and oil refinery activities, besides Hg atmospheric depositions, are important across the bay. Sediments in the Ribeira Bay act as an important Hg sink. If sediments are eroded or disturbed, they may release Hg, thus posing a serious risk to wildlife and ecosystem health.
Document Type
Journal Article
School
Centre for Marine Ecosystems Research / School of Science
RAS ID
29834
Grant Number
ARC Number : LE170100219
Copyright
subscription content
Publisher
Elsevier Ltd
Comments
Hatje, V., Andrade, R. L. B., Jesus, R. M., Masqué, P., Albergaria-Barbosa, A. C. R., de Andrade, J. B., & Santos, A. C. S. S. (2019). Historical records of mercury deposition in dated sediment cores reveal the impacts of the legacy and present-day human activities in Todos os Santos Bay, Northeast Brazil. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 145, 396-406. Available here