Thread by @weatherindia

#Greenland’s Melting Glaciers Are Releasing Shocking Amounts of #Mercury in the Nation’s Rivers

weather.com/en-IN/india/en…

(📸: (Jeremy Harbeck/NASA)

If you thought melting ice sheets only raised environmental red flags in terms of #GlobalWarming and rising sea levels, you are in for an unfortunate surprise.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

In a recent discovery, scientists have found a melting ice sheet in the southwestern region of #Greenland that is releasing huge amounts of mercury into the nearby rivers and fjords (narrow, deep inlets created by glaciers).

#glacier #Mercury

These reports highlighting the concentration of toxic mercury in rivers are grave in nature, as they are comparable to the pollution level of rivers in industrial China, which contribute about one-third to the world’s mercury pollution.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

This has raised alarm all across the world, as questions are being raised about the effects of glacier melting in an area that is a major exporter of seafood, including cold-water shrimp, halibut, and cod.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

"There are surprisingly high levels of mercury in the glacial meltwaters we sampled in southwest Greenland," said Jon Hawkings, a postdoctoral researcher at Florida State University and the German Research Centre for Geosciences.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

Initially in the study, researchers sampled water from three different rivers and two fjords next to the ice sheet to gain a better understanding of meltwater water quality from the glacier, & how nutrients in these meltwaters may sustain coastal ecosystems.

#Greenland #Mercury

The results they uncovered from these samples were quite surprising, as mercury levels were found to be in excess of 150 ng L-1—far higher than an average river that typically has about 1-10 ng L-1.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

Further, these findings highlight the complex impact of climate change and rising temperatures, under which 10 percent of the Earth’s land surface that is covered by glaciers is undergoing rapid change.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury

Interestingly, the authors of this study noted that the source of mercury in these glaciers is likely the Earth itself, as opposed to fossil fuel combustion or other industrial sources.

#Greenland #glacier #Mercury