Abstract
Mercury analyses were carried out on 25 soil samples and 6 water samples collected during visits to 21 sites in Israel and the Sinai in December 1972 and February to June 1974. Water samples all yielded less than 1 µg kg−1 of Hg although mineral scale from municipal water in Rehovot contained 220 µg kg−1 and Dead Sea salt crystals contained 1000 µg kg−1.
In the Israel series, coastal plain sites were low in Hg but high levels were found eastward toward the Golan-Lake Kinneret area and at Ein Gedi near the Dead Sea. In the Sinai, low coastal plain levels contrasted with high levels on the interior toward the mountains.
The data suggest that higher Hg levels are associated with the thermal and tectonic history of the area.
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Siegel, S.M., Siegel, B.Z. A note on soil and water mercury levels in Israel and the Sinai. Water Air Soil Pollut 5, 263–268 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00158341
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00158341