The distribution of mercury in a forest floor transect across the central United States

Charles H. (Hobie) Perry; Michael C. Amacher; William Cannon; Randy Kolka; Laurel Woodruff

Treesearch

The distribution of mercury in a forest floor transect across the central United States

Informally Refereed

Authors:

Charles H. (Hobie) Perry, Michael C. Amacher, William Cannon, Randy Kolka, Laurel Woodruff

Year:

2009

Type:

General Technical Report

Station:

Northern Research Station

Source:

In: McRoberts, Ronald E.; Reams, Gregory A.; Van Deusen, Paul C.; McWilliams, William H., eds. Proceedings of the eighth annual forest inventory and analysis symposium; 2006 October 16-19; Monterey, CA. Gen. Tech. Report WO-79. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 103-108.

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Abstract

Mercury (Hg) stored in soil organic matter may be released when the forest floor is consumed by fire. Our objective is to document the spatial distribution of forest floor Hg for a transect crossing the central United States. Samples collected by the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Inventory and Analysis Soil Quality Indicator were tested for Hg using cold-vapor atomic absorption. We found patterns of Hg concentration that differ from earlier studies; the patterns of Hg concentration had a bimodal distribution with high values in both the northern Rocky Mountains and the Great Lake States. Future work will include an evaluation of the role of elevation and forest type on Hg storage.

Parent Publication

Proceedings of the eighth annual forest inventory and analysis symposium

Citation

Perry, Charles H. (Hobie); Amacher, Michael C.; Cannon, William; Kolka, Randall K.; Woodruff, Laurel. 2009. The distribution of mercury in a forest floor transect across the central United States. In: McRoberts, Ronald E.; Reams, Gregory A.; Van Deusen, Paul C.; McWilliams, William H., eds. Proceedings of the eighth annual forest inventory and analysis symposium; 2006 October 16-19; Monterey, CA. Gen. Tech. Report WO-79. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 103-108.