Toxic trace elements such as lead, mercury, arsenic and cadmium occur naturally in small quantities in coastal seas.
Toxic trace elements such as lead, mercury, arsenic and cadmium occur naturally in small quantities in coastal seas. However, human activities such as industry and agriculture contribute significantly larger amounts. A new study has examined how climate change is already affecting the distribution and accumulation of these elements, and how it might do so in the future. One of the findings: Climate-related natural events are releasing more pollutants that pose a risk to human and animal health. However, there is still insufficient knowledge about how these contaminants will behave in the future.
The ocean is warming, becoming more acidic, and losing oxygen – these are well-known effects of climate change. What has been less studied is how these changes are affecting contaminants in the seas. A new study titled “Impacts of Climate Change on the Transport, Fate, and Biogeochemistry of Contaminants in Coastal Marine Ecosystems” has investigated the interaction of trace elements with climate change. The findings have been published in the Nature journal Communications Earth & Environment.
Read more at Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (GEOMAR)
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