Concerns about mercury and other contaminates in the North will dominate the agenda at a major Arctic scientific conference in Victoria, B.C., this week.

The event, which began Monday, brings together more than 400 scientists and representatives from aboriginal groups and a number of Northern organizations.

The weeklong conference combines workshops from the federal government's northern contaminants program (NCP) along with the annual meeting of ArcticNet, a group of scientists and researchers working in the North.

Attendees will examine the NCP's research on distant contaminants, including PCBs, dioxins and mercury, entering the Arctic environment by air or water.

The NCP has been studying the effects of long-range contaminants in the three territories, the Nunavik region of northern Quebec and Labrador.

The growing presence of mercury is of particular concern, Russel Shearer, a scientist with Department of Indian and Northern Affairs, told CBC News.

"We're seeing some very significant increases of mercury in the animals and potentially the people who eat the animals as well, so it's a concern that we're studying right now," he said.

ArcticNet's annual scientific meeting begins Tuesday with scientists sharing results from their studies on the impact of climate change in the North and contaminants in the marine ecosystem.

The conference runs through Friday.