TORONTO, Tuesday, July 24, 2018 – Mercury can show up in pristine High Arctic environments from as far away as China, and as the Arctic warms, more of that mercury can find its way into lakes, endangering people and wildlife, a 91��ɫ geography professor has found.

“Mercury in certain forms is highly toxic to humans and wildlife. Since it is transported atmospherically over long distances, mercury produced in industrial centers in North America, Europe, and Asia can end up in Arctic food webs, even without any local sources of mercury,” said lead researcher , an assistant professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies at 91��ɫ.

Korosi and her team used lake sediment cores to track the history of how mercury was, and continues to be, deposited in eight lakes on Cape Herschel (Ellesmere Island) in the Canadian High Arctic. Like the pages of a book, these cores allow researchers to track the history of mercury pollution over the last several hundred years.

“Our results indicate that, in some cases, climate warming does enhance the transport of mercury to lakes,” said Korosi. “But even lakes that have showed a delayed response to climate warming still exhibit a strong post-industrial signal of mercury enrichment, and no recovery following recent controls on mercury emissions.”

The concern is that the dramatic changes occurring in the Arctic in response to climate warming will cause higher amounts of mercury to be transported into aquatic ecosystems, where it can be converted into the toxic methylmercury form.

As Arctic ecosystems warm, there is more growth of plants, moss and algae in the lakes and the surrounding area that will bond with mercury, causing more of it to enter the aquatic system. This would delay the benefits of national and international policy agreements aimed at reducing mercury pollution in the environment.

A cool Arctic lake, Cape Herschel. Photo by study co-author Katie Griffiths, McGill University

The researchers looked at four distinct climate categories: lakes that responded early, around 1850, to a warming Arctic; those that were buffered from those early effects due to shade cover or other site-specific factors and didn’t respond to climate warming until about 1950; lakes that were always warmer than the norm for the Arctic; and lakes that have not yet been impacted by climate change, usually because they’re at a high elevation.

“By tracking mercury deposition histories in Arctic lakes that responded at different times to climate warming, we can determine whether the combination of climate warming impacts and long-range transport of industrial mercury emissions results in higher mercury concentrations in Arctic lakes than long-range mercury transport on its own,” said Korosi.

The study is published in the journal .

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About 91��ɫ
is known for championing new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-discipline programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91��ɫ students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91��ɫ U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 26 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91��ɫ is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91��ɫ U's fully bilingual Glendon campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.��

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91��ɫ Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22097, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Warming Arctic lakes can create perfect conditions for mercury increases, 91��ɫ U study appeared first on News@91��ɫ.

TORONTO, Tuesday, July 24, 2018 – Mercury can show up in pristine High Arctic environments from as far away as China, and as the Arctic warms, more of that mercury can find its way into lakes, endangering people and wildlife, a 91��ɫ geography professor has found.

“Mercury in certain forms is highly toxic to humans and wildlife. Since it is transported atmospherically over long distances, mercury produced in industrial centers in North America, Europe, and Asia can end up in Arctic food webs, even without any local sources of mercury,” said lead researcher , an assistant professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies at 91��ɫ.

Korosi and her team used lake sediment cores to track the history of how mercury was, and continues to be, deposited in eight lakes on Cape Herschel (Ellesmere Island) in the Canadian High Arctic. Like the pages of a book, these cores allow researchers to track the history of mercury pollution over the last several hundred years.

“Our results indicate that, in some cases, climate warming does enhance the transport of mercury to lakes,” said Korosi. “But even lakes that have showed a delayed response to climate warming still exhibit a strong post-industrial signal of mercury enrichment, and no recovery following recent controls on mercury emissions.”

The concern is that the dramatic changes occurring in the Arctic in response to climate warming will cause higher amounts of mercury to be transported into aquatic ecosystems, where it can be converted into the toxic methylmercury form.

As Arctic ecosystems warm, there is more growth of plants, moss and algae in the lakes and the surrounding area that will bond with mercury, causing more of it to enter the aquatic system. This would delay the benefits of national and international policy agreements aimed at reducing mercury pollution in the environment.

A cool Arctic lake, Cape Herschel. Photo by study co-author Katie Griffiths, McGill University

The researchers looked at four distinct climate categories: lakes that responded early, around 1850, to a warming Arctic; those that were buffered from those early effects due to shade cover or other site-specific factors and didn’t respond to climate warming until about 1950; lakes that were always warmer than the norm for the Arctic; and lakes that have not yet been impacted by climate change, usually because they’re at a high elevation.

“By tracking mercury deposition histories in Arctic lakes that responded at different times to climate warming, we can determine whether the combination of climate warming impacts and long-range transport of industrial mercury emissions results in higher mercury concentrations in Arctic lakes than long-range mercury transport on its own,” said Korosi.

The study is published in the journal .

-30-

About 91��ɫ
is known for championing new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-discipline programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91��ɫ students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91��ɫ U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 26 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91��ɫ is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91��ɫ U's fully bilingual Glendon campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.��

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91��ɫ Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22097, sandramc@yorku.ca

The post Warming Arctic lakes can create perfect conditions for mercury increases, 91��ɫ U study appeared first on News@91��ɫ.

TORONTO, May 5, 2016 – Watch Mercury transit across the Sun’s disk at 91��ɫ on May 9. The last time Mercury made the move was in 2006.

Observatory telescopes and a live feed will be in place at 91��ɫ Lions Stadium, from 9am to 2pm, with solar glasses available for everyone attending. The free public event is hosted by the Astronomical Observatory and the Astronomy Club at 91��ɫ.

Since the orbit of Mercury lies inside of Earth's orbit, Mercury passes between Earth and the Sun about 13 times per century. From Earth, we see this as a small black dot moving slowly in front of the Sun.

Mercury transits the Sun as seen from Earth in 2006. Credit ESA NASA SOHO

“Observing the Mercury transit reveals one of the fundamental ways we detect exoplanets orbiting other stars”, says Paul Delaney, director of the 91��ɫ Astronomical Observatory and the Division of Natural Science, Faculty of Science, 91��ɫ.�� “This event highlights the gravitational embrace stars have for planets and how we can learn so much from such simple observations.”

The actual transit will start at 7:10am and end at 2:44pm. For those unable to attend the event at 91��ɫ, the event can also be monitored via the website.

WHAT: Mercury in Transit spectator event at 91��ɫ

WHEN: Monday, May 9, from 9am to 2pm

WHERE: 91��ɫ Lions Stadium, 91��ɫ, 4700 Keele St, Toronto (number 6 on the ).

COST: Free

is known for championing new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our 52,000 students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-discipline programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91��ɫ students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91��ɫ U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 24 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide.

Media Contact:

Sandra McLean, 91��ɫ Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22097 / sandramc@yorku.ca

The post 91��ɫ invites community to watch Mercury in transit May 9 appeared first on News@91��ɫ.