Unraveling the biogeochemical cycling of mercury using stable mercury isotopes as source tracers

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Mercury contamination poses a significant threat for human health and natural ecosystems at local, regional and global scales. Although man-made mercury emissions have increased dramatically since pre-industrial times, natural emissions represent a substantial contribution the overall global inventory and fluxes. This poses a considerable challenge for regulators tasked with managing mercury in the environment, as it is often impossible to distinguish natural from anthropogenic mercury sources. Thus, a detailed understanding of the biogeochemical cycle of mercury is crucial, but not always sufficient. The measurement of stable mercury isotope ratios and determination mercury isotope fractionation is a new promising tool to trace sources of mercury and to gain new insights into their relative importance to the total mercury transport.