Photo by Jennifer Coombes

Assistant Professor of Environmental Science Lynne Gratz is the lead principal investigator on a $1.6 million, multi-institution National Science Foundation grant. The research project, a collaboration between Colorado College, Utah State University, University of Colorado Boulder, and University of Utah, will focus on the chemistry of atmospheric mercury, a hazardous air pollutant of both local and global importance. The project will develop improved methods for measuring oxidized mercury and then utilize the measurement system at the Storm Peak Laboratory in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. CC’s portion of the grant, $254,471, will support two student researchers each in the summer of 2021 and 2022, as well as Gratz’s participation in the fieldwork and data analysis over the next three years.