Requirements for the Establishment of
Mercury Monitors in Mexico as a Pilot
Project
Identification of the Technical Design of the
Monitoring Pilot Project for Wet Deposition of
Mercury in Mexico
ANNE M. HANSEN, MANFRED VAN AFFERDEN
General Project Objective
Identify the requirements for the establishment of
mercury monitors in Mexico as a pilot project in
collaboration with key agencies in Mexico and liaising
with appropriate Canadian and US authorities as well as
private sector contractors.
What is the big
idea?
Extension of Mercury Deposition Network
Integration of Mexican
sampling stations into the
existing network
Intensification of future
collaboration in prevention
of exposure
Installation of two wet-deposition monitors
MDN requires two different instruments for the collection
and measurement of precipitation:
An electrically powered collector that automatically
collects precipitation samples for mercury analysis
A raingage that mechanically measures and records
the amount of precipitation
Collector
Raingage
Sample and data handling
Weekly precipitation samples should be collected every
Tuesday and mailed to the Mercury Analytical Laboratory
at Frontier Geosciences (USA) for analysis by cold vapor
atomic fluorescence spectrometry.
The MDN provides data for total mercury, but will include
methylmercury if desired by a site sponsor.
Field bucket
Event recorder trace
Why install
mercury
monitors in
Mexico?
Deposition of Mercury
General NADP Monitoring Objectives
To characterize geographic patterns and temporal
trends in biologically important chemical deposition.
To support research activities related to:
The productivity of managed and natural systems;
The chemistry of surface and ground waters,
including estuaries;
The health of domestic animals, wildlife, and fish;
Human health.
(Dossett and Bowersox, 1999)
General Mexican Objectives
Assess mercury exposure rates to ecosystems and
human populations through mercury wet
deposition in Mexico;
Evaluate the effects of emissions reduction and
control on a long term basis;
Identify main mercury transport routes;
Fulfill international commitments;
Increase Mexican capacity in the assessment of
mercury deposition and effects.
Who will be
responsible?
Responsibilities in Mexico
Semarnat
Subsecretaría
de Planeación
y Política
Ambiental
Subsecretaría de
Gestión para
la protección
ambiental
Subsecretaría
de Fomento y
Normatividad
Ambiental
Dirección General
de Planeación y
Evaluación
Dirección General
de Impacto y
Riesgo Ambiental
Dirección General
de Estadística e
Información
Ambiental
Dirección General
de Manejo
Integral de
Contaminantes
Dirección General
de Política Ambiental e Integración Regional y
Sectorial
Dirección General
de Zona Federal
Marítimo Terrestre
y Ambientes
Costeros
Dirección General
de Vida Silvestre
Dirección General
de Federalización
y Descentralización de Servicios
Forestales y de
Suelo
Unidad
Coordinadora
de Participación
Social y
Transparencia
Oficialía Mayor
Dirección General
del Sector Primario y Recursos
Naturales
Renovables
Dirección General
de la Industria
Dirección General
de Fomento Ambiental del Desarrollo Urbano,
Transporte, Servicios y Turismo
Dirección General
de Energía y
Actividades
Extractivas
Unidad
Coordinadora
de Asuntos
Internacionales
Dirección General
de Recursos
Humanos
Coordinación
General de
Comunicación
Social
Dirección General
de Programación,
Organización
y Presupuesto
Contraloría
Interna
Coordinación
General de
Delegaciones
Dirección General
de Recursos
Materiales,
Inmuebles y
Servicios
Delegaciones
Federales
Dirección General
de Informática y
Telecomunicaciones
Centro de
Educación y
Capacitación
para el
Desarrollo
Sustentable
Coordinación
General
Jurídica
Órganos
Desconcentrados
Comisión
Nacional del
Agua
Instituto
Mexicano de
Tecnología del
Agua
Instituto
Nacional de
Ecología
Procuraduría
Federal de
Protección al
Ambiente
Comisión
Nacional de
Áreas Naturales
Protegidas
Órgano
Descentralizado
Comisión
Nacional
Forestal
Comisión
Intersecretarial
Comisión
Nacional para el
Conocimiento y
Uso de la
Biodiversidad
Responsibilities in Mexico
The responsibilities of monitoring mercury in wet
deposition is not clearly defined
Potential future responsible institutions:
Semarnat: Has the principal responsibility
CNA: National Water Commission
National Meteorological Service (SMN)
INE: National Institute of Ecology
CENICA
Where to install
the monitors?
Strategy of site selection
Far from Mercury point sources in order to measure
background levels
On or close to the site of already existing
meteorological stations or observatories
Automatic Hydrometeorological
Stations (AHSs)(60)
Meteorological
Observatories (82)
NADP/NTN site selection criteria
(modified according to Bigelow et al. 2001)
Regional
Local
On-site
Specific Mexican Site selection criteria
Accessibility and infrastructure (courier mail service,
electricity, telephone, laboratory)
An operator lives on or very close to the site
Site selection procedure
1st step: Application of regional requirements (20 and 50 km)
From the 142 sites (AHS, MO) 108 stations were excluded
2nd step: Application of Mexican requirements (operator)
From the AHSs only 16 fulfill the condition of potential operators
living close to the site
3rd step: Application of local and on-site requirements (telephone)
From these 16 sites only 6 do not fulfill these requirements
4th step: Presence of chemical lab for major ions
Among the final 10 stations, only 4 have a chemical laboratory
close by
5th step:
On-site verification and evaluation of 2 sites
Location of the preselected sites
Cd. Constitución
Huejutla
Tecamachalco
Puerto Ángel
On-site evaluation of Huejutla-site
On-site evaluation of Puerto Ángel-site
Who will
participate?
Project Coordination
Steering Committee
NADP, INE, NACEC (Mercury, M&A Task Forces)
Technical Project Management
IMTA
Equipment and Analysis
NADP, Frontier Geosciences among others
On-site Institutions
Huejutla:
SMN-CNA, Instituto Tecnológico Agropecuario
(operator Biol. Alejandra López Mancilla) Cd.
Puerto Angel:
SMN-CNA (operator Ing. Ulises López Rodríguez)
Constitución:
SMN-CNA (operator Javier Martínez Arreola)
Tecamachalco:
SMN-CNA, Universidad Tecnológica
(operator M.C. Ofelia Araceli López Mejía)
Capacity building US / Canadian Institutions
Training courses:
On-site: Installation, initial sampling phase,
maintenance
US/Canada: Wet deposition, sampling and
maintenance, interpretation of results
US/Canada: Clean - Lab analysis
On-site supervision:
Routine operation and quality control
How much will
it cost?
Costs for an extended, subsidized pilot project (US$)
Equipment
9,100
Installation
12,000
Operation
38,220
Capacity building
16,100
Balance, conductance meter and electrode, pH meter
and electrodes, lab-material
Site preparation and modification, platform, shipping,
custom liberation
Shipping, personnel, communication, office supply,
maintenance and materials
Training courses, on-site supervision
Analysis
43,680
Mercury (free), methylmercury, major ions
Technical project management
Personnel, per diem, transportation, telephone
Total
67,300
186,400
When may it
start?
Right now?
Heavy rain
Steering
committee
Ing. José
Luis Razo
Quvedo
Ing. Orlando
Quintero
Martínez
Ing. Gloria
Herrera
Ing. Ángel
Barrera
Morteo
Biol. Alejandra
López
Mancilla
Javier
Martínez
Arreola
M.C. Ofelia
Araceli
López Mejía
Ing. Ulises
López
Rodríguez