Articles | Volume 26, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-4785-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-4785-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Technical note: A framework for causal inference applied to solar radiation and temperature effects on measured levels of gaseous elemental mercury in seawater
Computer Science and Engineering, University of Gothenburg and Chalmers, 40530 Göteborg, Sweden
Michelle Nerentorp Mastromonaco
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, 41133 Göteborg, Sweden
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Håkan Pleijel, Jenny Klingberg, Michelle Nerentorp, Malin C. Broberg, Brigitte Nyirambangutse, John Munthe, and Göran Wallin
Biogeosciences, 18, 6313–6328, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6313-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-6313-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Mercury is a problematic metal in the environment. It is crucial to understand the Hg circulation in ecosystems. We explored the mercury concentration in foliage from a diverse set of plants, locations and sampling periods to study the accumulation of Hg in leaves–needles over time. Mercury was always higher in older tissue: in broadleaved trees, conifers and wheat. Specific leaf area, the leaf area per unit leaf mass, turned out to be critical for Hg accumulation in leaves–needles.
Attilio Naccarato, Antonella Tassone, Maria Martino, Sacha Moretti, Antonella Macagnano, Emiliano Zampetti, Paolo Papa, Joshua Avossa, Nicola Pirrone, Michelle Nerentorp, John Munthe, Ingvar Wängberg, Geoff W. Stupple, Carl P. J. Mitchell, Adam R. Martin, Alexandra Steffen, Diana Babi, Eric M. Prestbo, Francesca Sprovieri, and Frank Wania
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 3657–3672, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3657-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3657-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Mercury monitoring in support of the Minamata Convention requires effective and reliable analytical tools. Passive sampling is a promising approach for creating a sustainable long-term network for atmospheric mercury with improved spatial resolution and global coverage. In this study the analytical performance of three passive air samplers (CNR-PAS, IVL-PAS, and MerPAS) was assessed over extended deployment periods and the accuracy of concentrations was judged by comparison with active sampling.
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Short summary
We studied how environmental factors influence the release of mercury from seawater to the atmosphere. We applied a novel approach in which prior knowledge about cause-and-effect is captured as graphical models and then used to estimate effect sizes. Results showed that sunlight affects mercury both directly and indirectly, with about 32 % of the effect explained by temperature increase. Thus, causal models can improve our understanding of pollution processes and the effect policies.
We studied how environmental factors influence the release of mercury from seawater to the...
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