Measurements of mercury in the near-surface layer of the atmosphere of the Russian Arctic

A series of measurements of gaseous elemental mercury concentrations in near-surface air of the Russian Arctic Region were carried out from 1994 to 1997. The measurements were conducted in Murmansk at a stationary site in April–May 1994, on a cruise in Motovsky Bay and Kola Bay during May–June 1996, and along the Russian Northern Sea Route in April–May 1997 on board the nuclear icebreaker ‘Soviet Union’. Silver absorption was used for trapping of mercury and the mass of mercury was determined by cold vapour atomic absorption spectrophotometery. Detection limits were approximately 0.3 ng/m3 (± error 46%). Sixty samples were selected and analysed. Sample volumes were 2.2 m3 ashore, and up to 6.6 m3 over water. The meteorological conditions, including a wind speed and direction, during the sampling period were typical of the spring–summer period of year, and therefore the concentrations of atmospheric mercury are regarded as representative for this season. The mean concentrations of mercury ranged from 2.2 ng/m3 for Murmansk city, 1.7 ng/m3 for Kola Bay, 1.6 ng/m3 for Motovsky Bay, 1.1 ng/m3 for the eastern part of the Barents Sea and 0.7 ng/m3 for the western part of the Kara Sea. The levels of mercury in Murmansk, and over Kola and Motovsky Bays were associated with a primary direction of a near-surface wind from the nearest sources of mercury emission located in the Russian North region. These are the non-ferrous metallurgical plants in Nickel in the case of Motovsky Bay and Murmansk garbage-disposal plant, for sampling points in Murmansk and over Kola Bay. These concentrations of mercury, measured in the spring-summer season, in near-surface air of the Russian North, are more than two-fold lower than the concentrations that are typical of continental background regions in western Russia, and are comparable to the concentrations measured in the Arctic regions of other countries.