The Great Lakes/Baltic Sea Partnership Program
2000 Fellowship Selections
Kestutis Kvietkus Great Lakes - Baltic Sea Fellowship
Report
Dr. Kestutis Kvietkus, Chief, Atmospheric Pollution
Research Laboratory, Institute of Physics and Vilnius Air Quality
Management Project Leader, Lithuania, visited US EPA Region 5 under a
Great Lakes-Baltic Sea Partnership Fellowship Program, from August 5,
2000 until September 3, 2000.
The main goal of my fellowship was to study mercury
problems in the US Great Lakes Region, including Mercury Total Maximum
Daily Load (TMDL) Air Deposition Pilot Project. I also assessed the
possibilities for use in the USA of a low-level Mercury Analyzer,
manufactured in Lithuania.
The objectives of my Fellowship project can be listed
as follows:
-
to attend Heavy Metals Conference, Ann Arbor,
Michigan;
-
to study the Mercury TMDL Project;
-
to meet mercury experts at University Illinois of
Chicago and Region 5;
-
to demonstrate Atomic Absorption Mercury Analyzer
GARDIS manufactured in Lithuania;
-
to visit Illinois monitoring stations, laboratories
and ZANDE Analytical Center in Columbus; to test Mercury Analyzer
GARDIS at RTP, North Carolina; to obtain information/experiences on
multi-media strategy development for reducing releases of mercury, on
available rules, regulations, identifying opportunities for
application and implementation of the findings in Lithuania.
Participation in the International Conference on Heavy
Metals in the Environment, August 6-10, 2000, Ann Arbor, Michigan gave me
the chance to meet with some of the leading mercury deposition experts
working at the University of Michigan and leading heavy metal analysts
from North America. During the Conference three papers on mercury and
heavy metals were presented and the Mercury Analyzer, GARDIS,
demonstrated. The three papers can be found at:
http://www.sph.umich.edu/eih/heavymetals/.
A number of professional contacts which were useful for the rest of stay
and will be useful for the future have been made.
Trip to Devil’s Lake, WI was very useful and
interesting: I received information about ambient mercury monitoring, made
mercury measurements at one of the background monitoring stations, learned
about Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources air deposition research
and TMDL project.
During the visit to US EPA Region 5, I learned about
the National Air Toxic Assessment Program, Mercury Program, participated
in the Lake Michigan Mass Balance Modeling Meeting, learned about Air
Toxic Monitoring and Air Dispersion Modeling.
I was invited to North Carolina to meet with US EPA,
Office of Air Quality and Office of Research and Development staff to
learn about metals monitoring, to test Mercury Analyzer GARDIS at US EPA
Research Triangle Park. I anticipate the publication of a joint report
about testing results and to continue future cooperation in mercury cycle
investigations.
The visit with Cook County Monitoring Group was useful
to gain understanding about new monitoring equipment and ambient
concentration levels of main pollutants. During the visit the GARDIS was
demonstrated and high levels of Hg in ambient laboratory were measured.
During the visit to Illinois EPA, the Illinois monitoring program was
studied and main air monitoring stations were visited.
Other visits included the University Illinois Chicago;
meetings with environmental health experts, environmental engineer and
mercury experts; air sampling and pollution experts, community issues
experts and a visit to Fogarty International Center. Fogarty IC has
programs in environmental health monitoring in Ukraine and Lithuania. The
Mercury Analyzer GARDIS has been demonstrated for the mercury experts of
University of Illinois.
I met with A US patent expert, discussed possibilities
to patent Mercury Analyzer GARDIS in USA.
During the visit to ZANDE Analytical Service in
Columbus, OH I demonstrated the Mercury Analyzer to the laboratory staff
ZANDE. The company donated a GC to Institute of Physics, Atmospheric
Pollution Research Laboratory and promised an ICP to be sent via Region 5
EPA and the Lithuanian Mercy Lift.
A number of potential business contacts, including
NICOR Gas Company which has to check 200,000 homes for mercury spills have
been made.
OVERALL SUMMARY
All meetings with different experts gave a very good
opportunity to learn much more in the area of interest: this will allow to
improve the knowledge of laboratory staff and students of Vilnius
University in Lithuania. The contacts made indicated the need for a
readily portable Mercury analyzer in the United States and resulted in
donation of equipment which will improve the capacity of the Atmospheric
Pollution Research Laboratory to conduct environmental studies in
Lithuania. The overall impression of the Fellowship program was very good
and all objectives were met.
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