In the early 1990s, our regional studies of lichens, mosses, and soils of arctic Alaska and Siberia demonstrated that contamination of these arctic terrestrial and freshwater landscapes by long-range atmospheric transport appears to be minimal, especially for lead. The situation with respect to cadmium and mercury is less clear. More recently, we have found that the caribou forage lichen Cetraria cucullata appears to retain persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as PCBs and DDTs, as does the monitoring moss Hylocomium splendens, faithfully reflecting contaminant landscapes of these semi-volatile compounds. Fingerprints of these semivolatile organochlorines differ depending on location (e.g., arctic Alaska vs. the Taimyr peninsula of Russia).

Current studies with Ithaca College  focus on routes of contaminant entry into freshwater systems of the western Arctic Alaskan coastal plain. The  Barrow Arctic Science Consortium provided logistics support, including identifying local Iņupiat elders who are experts on whitefish, as well as a translator, all of whom became important members of our research team. The project culminated with a series of community meetings in July 2004.