The National Science Foundation has given a grant to study mercury in the atmosphere and the impact it has on ecosystems and on human health. The grant will involve multiple institutions including Colorado College, University of Colorado, University of Utah, and our very own Utah State University Uintah Basin’s Bingham Research Center. Seth Lyman, the director and research associate professor at the Center, and Huy Tran, senior research scientist, will lead the project team. The team has developed a new and accurate way to measure oxidized mercury at the extremely low levels present in the atmosphere. Measurements will be taken at Steamboat Springs Ski Resort in Colorado. The group started the project in March of 2020 and will continue until 2023. The data collected will help the researchers to better understand how mercury moves through the atmosphere, how it becomes oxidized, and how mercury affects ecosystems and human health. While there isn’t much mercury in the atmosphere, and thus it isn’t a direct air quality concern, what is important is how mercury deposits on the earth. Seth Lyman explains that “as long as the mercury stays in the atmosphere, its impact on the environment is limited, however, when it deposits to the earth, it may lead to high mercury levels in fish, rice and other foods critical to human survival. We are trying to understand what happens to mercury in the atmosphere—both physically and chemically—so we can better predict how it affects our health. Understanding how mercury behaves in the atmosphere helps governments decide how best to reduce these health risks.”
