Mercury and the Everglades. A Synthesis and Model for Complex Ecosystem Restoration (PDF)

College of Pharmacy, at Florida A&M University (FAMU). He earned a B.S. degree in Chemistry from Wayne State University, an M.S. in Environmental & Industrial Health from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. in Marine Science from the College of William and Mary. Prior to joining FAMU, from 1996-2013 while with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Dr. Axelrad had responsibilities for writing and editing the annual 'Mercury and Sulfur Environmental Assessment' chapter of the 'South Florida Environmental Report' (SFER). This peer-reviewed publication - mandated by Florida's (1994) Everglades Forever Act - is issued annually and summarizes "all data and findings of the State's mercury monitoring and research in South Florida".The SFER chapter concerns the magnitude and extent of the Everglades mercury problem, mercury sources to the Everglades, mercury biogeochemistry, bioaccumulation, human and wildlife toxicology, and options for mitigating the mercury problem. At FAMU, Dr. Axelrad teaches Environmental Health and Environmental Toxicology, remains involved in research on mercury exposure to women of childbearing age, as well as on lead exposure in children.



Darren Rumbold is a Professor of Marine Science and Director of the Coastal Watershed Institute at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU). He earned a BA in Chemistry and a BS and MS in Biology from Florida Atlantic University. He completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Marine Biology and Fisheries at University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science in 1996. In 1997, he was awarded a U.S. EPA Environmental Science & Engineering Fellowship at the National Center for Environmental Assessment in Washington, DC. From 1998-2006, he served as Senior- and, later, Lead Scientist with South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) overseeing a program to learn the influential factors controlling mercury biogeochemistry, fate and effects in the Everglades. During his tenure, he served as Module lead under the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) coordinating efforts of state and federal agencies working on mercury. He also served as Technical lead for the Water Quality Team of the Southwest Florida Feasibility Study. In 2006, Dr. Rumbold joined the faculty of FGCU where he mentors students in taking a landscape-scale approach in assessing impacts of high-volume, freshwater discharges and the transport and fate of nutrients, mercury and other toxicants transported through the coastal watershed. As principal investigator (PI) or co-PI, he has secured millions in extramural funding for research; most recently, up to $4.1 million to provide ecological and environmental scientific support, on an as-needed basis, to the SFWMD.