Forum: Mercury in the Southern Hemisphere and Tropics

Photos credit: Marcello Veiga and Larissa Schneider

Collection launched: March 2020

GUEST EDITORS
Hélène Angot, Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado
Ruoyu Sun, Tianjin University, China
Alexandra Steffen, Environment and Climate Change Canada

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS
Jenny Fisher, Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry, School of Earth, Atmospheric & Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Australia
Larissa Schneider, College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University, Australia
Darren Sinclair, University of Canberra, Australia

Mercury is a naturally occurring element, but it has been directly mobilized by humans for thousands of years into aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems through mining, its use in precious metal extraction, its presence and release as a trace contaminant in many materials (e.g., coal, metal ores), and its use in products (e.g., paint, electronic devices) and by industry (chlor-alkali plants; as a catalyst).

Over the last two decades, the cycle of mercury between atmospheric, terrestrial and aquatic systems has received comprehensive attention in the Northern Hemisphere. In contrast, our understanding of the biogeochemical cycle of mercury in the Southern Hemisphere (SH) and tropics is very poor.

• This Forum aims to address this knowledge gap through combining research efforts, forging new collaborations and, crucially, increasing the visibility and impact of mercury research in the SH and tropics. Part of this forum is an integration of plenary presentations given at the 2019 Mercury Australia Symposium (www.mercury-australia.com.au).

Contributing papers can address one or more of the following topics:

• Present-day mercury sources, emissions and deposition.
• Historical sources, emission and deposition of mercury into the environment.
• Atmospheric transport and chemical transformation.
• Ecotoxicology.
• Regulation and policy related to mercury emission.
• Regulation, governance, policy and science related to the Minamata Convention.
• Analytical analyses and methods for mercury measurement.
• Advances in mercury modelling.
• Environmental processes related to mercury.

View All Articles in this Forum Collection