Abstract
Abstract - Suspended sediments (solids) contribute 58% (982 kg per year) of all mercury transported downstream in the study section of the Ottawa River. Although filtered water contains a low mercury concentration (13 ng/1 or 0.013 ppb), it accounts for 41% (689 kg per year) of all mercury transported downstream. The role of bed sediment movements on the mercury transport is very small, only 1%, in the study section. Most of the mercury (96.7% of total mercury and 97.8% of methylmercury) is in bed sediments. Biomass contains an insignificant portion of mercury (0.2% of total mercury and 1.7% of methylmercury), though it has a higher ratio of methylmercury to total mercury; plants (20%), invertebrates (40%) and fish (85%). Methylmercury production and destruction are in equilibrium in water and sediments without biological agents, such as higher aquatic plants, invertebrate and fish.
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