Analysis of Mercury Grouping in Soil in the Foz of the Tapajós River, Amazonia-Brazil

The region of Santarém, in the state of Pará, was chosen to carry out this research because it is at the center of discussions of mercury contamination in the Amazon. The objective of this paper is the analysis of Hg and Methyl-Hg speciation in soil. The methodological procedures to determine the total mercury and methylHg were carried out by means of samples, which were submitted to acid digestion and determinations of Hg performed by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry with cold vapor generation. The evaluation of the concentrations of mercury in the sampled and depth points was performed with the aid of cluster analysis, using the Hierarchical clustering method. The results obtained indicate that the total mercury in soil showed very high values in the analysis of total mercury with granulometry for fine fraction and gross fraction, indicating an urgent mobilization and political action in the municipal, state and federal spheres regarding the exposure of the environment environment to the mercury detected.