Mercury in Marine Ecosystems Poster

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This poster was used as a "worksheet" at a workshop, organized by researchers at Dartmouth Toxic Metals Research, and

funded by the Superfund Basic Research Program with support from the New Hampshire SeaGrant Program, [addressing] three major themes: the biogeochemical cycling of mercury in marine ecosystems, the mechanisms of mercury transfer in the food web, and the risk of human exposure of mercury from seafood and shell fish consumption.

Scientists attending the workshop met in groups to fill in the boxes on smaller versions of the worksheet and then added the information to the large poster, to be discussed and modified as the meeting progressed.

At the top are spaces for listing factors influencing or controlling mercury loading, methylation, bioaccumulation, and human exposure from marine fish and shellfish.

In the middle are areas to calculate terrestrial and riverine inputs, wastewater discharge from power plants, and atmospheric deposition (rain) into the ecosystem.

The large boxes at the bottom are used to calculate the amount of contaminants in the water column and sediments of freshwater, estuary, coastal, and open ocean environments, including the risk to seafood, commercial fishing industries, and people, through biaccumulation. Each worksheet is represented by an iconographic image of a vessel typical of the type of fishing practiced in each water, from small, private boats to large commercial fishing ships.

Illustration created in Adobe® Photoshop®
Graphic design created in Adobe® Illustrator®

© William Scavone. All Rights Reserved.