Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin that has accumulated in the world’s ecosystems and waterways. The primary mercury pollution sources globally are gold mining activities and coal combustion. In California, it has accumulated in waterways and organisms surrounding gold and mercury mines, mostly in rural areas, though it has also infiltrated into urban landscapes such as around the Bay Area.
We discuss some of the history and impacts of these mining operations in our book, since they are relevant to topics in Chapters 2, 6, 9, and 12. This is another example of how geographers and other researchers and professionals must call upon diverse interconnected disciplines and fields of study to gain the expertise necessary to understand these issues and solve such complicated problems. And it gives us another opportunity to expand coverage here on our website for an important topic we could only summarize in our book.
Enter outstanding student, professional, and extraordinary personality, Deseret Weeks. Deseret was a model student in my class several years ago: curious, dedicated, hard-working, and genuinely concerned about the state of the world and how she could make a positive difference. She carried her integrity, work ethic, and accumulated knowledge and skills forward to earn her master’s degree and complete a research project that would make any geographer proud. Her thesis represented a classic geographic problem, requiring an understanding of the systems and cycles that bridge physical and human geography. She connected seemingly disparate dots with her knowledge of disciplines that include chemistry, biogeography, hydrology, ecosystem analysis, wildlife and fisheries management, environmental science and justice, human health, and economic and cultural geography.
We are lucky to have dedicated researchers and professionals like Deseret Weeks who can use their critical thinking skills and the scientific method to analyze the complex issues of our time and to solve problems that are impacting all of us. And we are happy to share some of her work with you. Here, you can see how she has shed light on the mercury pollution that has impacted watersheds from Clear Lake to Cache Creek and into San Francisco Bay. These are map stories that help us gain a better perspective of a mercury pollution problem that can’t wait for solutions in this region recently suffering from historic wildfires that have ravaged surrounding landscapes, economies, and lives: https://deseretweeks.wixsite.com/mercuryintheccw/mercury-in-cali-and-the-ccw
