Contribution de la fonte des glaciers à la pollution chimique des lacs alpins

Mercury (Hg) is a ubiquitous toxicant harmful to human health and the environment. This global contamination issue is addressed under the 2017 Minamata Convention, which commits its current 144 parties to curb anthropogenic Hg emissions to air and releases to land and water.
One common misconception is that mitigation policies will directly and proportionately translate into reduced ecosystems contamination and human exposure. Climate change may, however, offset policy efforts by remobilizing legacy Hg reservoirs. Alpine glaciers, for example, have been shown to be secondary sources of pollutants. A major challenge facing the research and policy communities is thus to understand the extent to which climate change influences environmental trends and slows down the recovery of ecosystems.

This internship is part of the EPOCH-ALPS project that aims at decoupling anthropogenic and climate-driven contributions to observed environmental trends and at quantifying the climate penalty, i.e., the climate-driven influence on ecosystems recovery time. The focus is here on alpine lakes as they are particularly sensitive to anthropogenic pressure and climate stressors. In addition, they are a cornerstone of alpine ecosystems and a slower recovery rate from Hg contamination would affect the quality of ecosystem services they provide to local and downstream communities.

The objectives of the proposed internship are three-fold :
1. Analyze Hg concentrations in sediment core samples by atomic absorption spectrometry. This analytical work will be conducted at ISTerre in collaboration with Stéphane Guédron.
2. Interpret the Hg data and other datasets provided by project partners (e.g., sediment core datation provided by EDYTEM).
3. Contribute to publication writing.

Profile and skills required : M2 in chemistry or environmental sciences. Prior and demonstrated experience in analytical chemistry, ideally in the analysis of trace elements in environmental samples. Knowledge of a programming language (e.g., Python, R) or willingness to learn are required. Good English communication skills including reading, speaking, and writing are a plus.

How to apply : Send CV and cover letter to helene.angot univ-grenoble-alpes.fr