Dynamics of mercury content changes in snow in the heating season on the example of the city of Siedlce

The paper presents the results of research on the content of mercury in snow samples with the use of isotachophoresis. Snow samples were collected in December 2017 as well as in January and February 2018. Samples were collected in Siedlce in places where the individual heating of houses, mainly by hard coal, was visible. The highest mean content of mercury amounting to 0.36 μg/dm³ of water was determined in the snow samples collected in January 2018 in the Żwirowa housing development, and the lowest – 0.25 μg/dm³ in two housing developments: Nowe Siedlce and Topolowa, also collected in January. The snow samples collected in the Żwirowa housing development were characterised by the highest contamination with mercury compared to all the other samples collected for the analysis. The research is a continuation of pollution monitoring in the town of Siedlce in connection with the European Union recommendations on environmental protection and the ‘clean air’ programme implemented in Poland.