Global mercury impact synthesis: Processes in the Southern Hemisphere.

The mercury currently depositing to ecosystems represents largely a combination of (1) current anthropogenic emissions (e.g., from coal-fired power generation or use of mercury in artisanal and small-scale gold mining), (2) legacy contamination from historical anthropogenic mercury emissions; and (3) natural sources. Economic implications of mercury exposure in the context of the global mercury treaty: hair mercury levels and estimated lost economic productivity in selected developing countries. There are also major data gaps for mercury in Patagonian dust and ice fields, Hg concentration in the southern oceans, and volcanic and geothermal sources of mercury in the many active volcanic regions of the Southern Hemisphere. The authors emphasize the need to continue mercury monitoring, conducting process studies and earth system mercury modeling in order to distinguish emission reduction effects from those due to climate change. [Extracted from the article]