Plateau’s mercury problem
Print Edition
MELTING glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau may lead to increased mercury runoff from soil, which could in turn cause pollution downstream, according to researchers.
Mercury is a toxic element and the melting of glaciers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in western China has affected mercury discharge, said Zhang Qianggong, a researcher with the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in Environmental Pollution, a British journal.
Zhang and fellow researchers studied samples from the Zhadang glacier at the Qugaqie Basin on the plateau.
Glaciers, particularly alpine glaciers, have been receding at an accelerated rate in recent decades. Concern is growing about the release of pollutants due to melting glaciers as well as the potential effects on the atmosphere and glacier-fed eco-systems, Zhang said.
Data from the Qugaqie Basin show a remarkably high amount of mercury passing through.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
