title: Mercury speciation in the Adriatic Sea.
abstract: Mercury and its speciation were studied in surface and deep waters of the Adriatic Sea. Several mercury species (i.e. DGM – dissolved gaseous Hg, RHg – reactive Hg, THg – total Hg, MeHg – monomethyl Hg and DMeHg – dimethylmercury) together with other water parameters were measured in coastal and open sea deep water profiles. THg concentrations in the water column, as well as in sediments and pore waters, were the highest in the northern, most polluted part of the Adriatic Sea as the consequence of Hg mining in Idrija and the heavy industry of northern Italy. Certain profiles in the South Adriatic Pit exhibit an increase of DGM just over the bottom due to its diffusion from sediment as a consequence of microbial and/or tectonic activity. Furthermore, a Hg mass balance for the Adriatic Sea was calculated based on measurements and literature data.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, "Jožef Stefan" Institute, Jamova 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia. Electronic address: joze.kotnik@ijs.si.
authors.forename: Jože
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kotnik
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, "Jožef Stefan" Institute, Jamova 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Milena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Horvat
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, "Jožef Stefan" Institute, Jamova 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Nives
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ogrinc
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, "Jožef Stefan" Institute, Jamova 39, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Fajon
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, University of Ljubljana, Jamova 2, SI-1000, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Dušan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Žagar
authors.affiliation: Ifremer, Centre for the Mediterranean Sea, BP 330, F-83507 La Seyne-sur-Mer, France.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cossa
authors.affiliation: CNR - Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research, Rende, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sprovieri
authors.affiliation: CNR - Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research, Rende, Italy.
authors.forename: Nicola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Pirrone
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D007558:Italy; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis*; D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D008906:Mining; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D008767:Methylmercury Compounds; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C073972:dimethyl mercury; D008628:Mercury
keywords: Adriatic Sea; Deep water profiles; Mass balance; Mercury; Sediments; Speciation