Microbe study highlights Greenland ice sheet toxicity
The Greenland ice sheet is often seen as a pristine environment, but new research has revealed that may not be the case. The Greenland ice sheet is often seen as a pristine environment, but new research has revealed that may not be the case [Credit: IOP Publishing] A Danish-led study, published today in the journal Environmental Research Letters , examined how microbes from the ice sheet have the potential to resist and degrade globally-emitted contaminants such as mercury, lead, PAH and PCB. Dr Aviaja Hauptmann, from the University of Greenland, led the research. She said: "Globally emitted contaminants accumulate in the Arctic and are stored in the frozen environments of the cryosphere, essentially meaning they have become reservoirs of toxic chemicals. "Our understanding of how biological processes interact with contamination in the Arctic is limited, which is why we hope our study represents a large step forward in the understanding and solving of this problem." The