Suchanek Hg Contaminant Diagram WERC

A series of inter-disciplinary physical, chemical, biological and limnological studies elucidate how ongoing Hg loading to the lake from the mine is influenced by acid mine drainage and other chemical and biological factors and how wind-driven currents and baroclinic circulation patterns redistribute Hg throughout the lake. Based on a mass balance Hg budget calculation (Suchanek et al. 2009), Clear Lake is one of the most Hg contaminated lakes in the world, with the mine contributing an ongoing loading of ca. 325 kg of Hg to the lake each year.