Substantial Mercury Releases and Local Deposition from Permafrost Peatland Wildfires in Southwestern Alaska

Increasing wildfire activity at high northern latitudes has the potential to mobilize large amounts of terrestrial mercury (Hg). However, understanding implications for Hg cycling and ecosystems is hindered by sparse research on peatland wildfire Hg emissions. In this study, we used measurements of soil organic carbon (SOC) and Hg, burn depth, and environmental indices derived from satellite remote sensing to develop machine learning models for predicting Hg emissions from major wildfires in the permafrost peatland of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) in southwestern Alaska. Wildfire Hg emissions during summer 2015─estimated as the product of Hg:SOC (0.38 ± 0.17 ng Hg g C<sup>1-</sup>), predicted SOC stores (mean [5th-95th] = 9.1 [5.3-11.2] kg C m<sup>-2</sup>), and burn depth (11.3 [8.2-13.9] cm)─were 556 [164-1138] kg Hg or approximately 6% of Hg emissions from wildfire activity >60°N. Modeling estimates suggest that wildfire nearly doubled summertime Hg deposition within 10 km, despite advection of more than 75% of total emissions beyond Alaska. YKD areal emissions combined with remote sensing estimates of burned area suggest that wildfire Hg emissions from northern peatlands (25.4 [14.9-33.6] Mg y<sup>-1</sup>) are an important component of the northern Hg budget. Additional research is needed to refine these estimates and understand the implications for Arctic and global Hg cycling.

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Publication Details

Journal
Environmental Science & Technology
Published
2024-11-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c08765
Citations
4
Primary Topic
Fire effects on ecosystems
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.13

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article

Substantial Mercury Releases and Local Deposition from Permafrost Peatland Wildfires in Southwestern Alaska

Sierra Melton, Brendan M. Rogers, Prentiss H. Balcom, Sagnik Dey et al.
4 citations
Environmental Science & Technology
Fire effects on ecosystems
1.13
article

Substantial Mercury Releases and Local Deposition from Permafrost Peatland Wildfires in Southwestern Alaska

Sierra Melton, Brendan M. Rogers, Prentiss H. Balcom, Sagnik Dey, Benjamin M. Geyman, S. Ludwig, Edauri Navarro-Pérez, Natalie Baillargeon, Seeta A. Sistla, Scott Zolkos, Ann McElvein, Stefano Potter, Elsie M. Sunderland, Susan M. Natali, Michael Moubarak
article en
4 citations

Abstract

Increasing wildfire activity at high northern latitudes has the potential to mobilize large amounts of terrestrial mercury (Hg). However, understanding implications for Hg cycling and ecosystems is hindered by sparse research on peatland wildfire Hg emissions. In this study, we used measurements of soil organic carbon (SOC) and Hg, burn depth, and environmental indices derived from satellite remote sensing to develop machine learning models for predicting Hg emissions from major wildfires in the permafrost peatland of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) in southwestern Alaska. Wildfire Hg emissions during summer 2015─estimated as the product of Hg:SOC (0.38 ± 0.17 ng Hg g C<sup>1-</sup>), predicted SOC stores (mean [5th-95th] = 9.1 [5.3-11.2] kg C m<sup>-2</sup>), and burn depth (11.3 [8.2-13.9] cm)─were 556 [164-1138] kg Hg or approximately 6% of Hg emissions from wildfire activity >60°N. Modeling estimates suggest that wildfire nearly doubled summertime Hg deposition within 10 km, despite advection of more than 75% of total emissions beyond Alaska. YKD areal emissions combined with remote sensing estimates of burned area suggest that wildfire Hg emissions from northern peatlands (25.4 [14.9-33.6] Mg y<sup>-1</sup>) are an important component of the northern Hg budget. Additional research is needed to refine these estimates and understand the implications for Arctic and global Hg cycling.

Environmental Science & TechnologyVol. 58(46)
Pennsylvania State University (US), Woodwell Climate Research Center (US), Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PR), Harvard University (US), California Polytechnic State University (US), Hamilton College (US), Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences (PL), Harvard University Press (US), Environmental Resources Management (United Kingdom) (GB), Institute of Life Sciences (IN), ICF International (United Kingdom) (GB), Arizona State University (US), ICF International (United States) (US), Columbia University (US), University of California, Berkeley (US)
Office of Polar Programs
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 22%
Fire effects on ecosystems
1.13
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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