Brown snow: A long-range transport event in the Canadian Arctic

Journal Article · Fri Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Environmental Science and Technology; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/es00014a010· OSTI ID:5194298

Welch, H E; Muir, D C.G.; Billeck, B N; Lockhart, W L; Brunskill, G J; Kling, H J ^[1]; Olson, M P ^[2]; Lemoine, R M ^[3]

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1. Freshwater Inst., Winnipeg (Canada)
2. Atmospheric Environment Service, Downsview, Ontario (Canada)
3. Hardy BBT Ltd., Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada)

The authors document the occurrence of a long-range transport event that deposited thousands of tons of fine particulates on the District of Keewatin, central Canadian Arctic, {approximately}63 N. Air mass trajectories, clay mineral composition, soot particles, and visible organic remains point to Asian sources for the brown snow material, probably western China. Semivolatile organic pollutants detected in the brown snow included polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ({Sigma}PAH), PCB congeners, and DDT-related compounds ({Sigma}DDT), polychlorinated camphenes (PCCs), as well as the herbicide trifuluralin and insecticides methoxychlor, endosulfan, and hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH). {Sigma}PAH, PCB, and PCC concentrations were within the range reported in other studies of Arctic snow but {Sigma}DDT levels were 2-10 times higher than previous reports. High molecular weight PAH may have been associated with soot particles in the brown snow but evidence for Asian sources of the pesticides was not strong because of unknown source signal strengths and possible atmospheric transformations of the compounds. Fluxes of these pollutants were also determined by analyzing sediment cores from two small headwater lakes near the sampling site. The quantities of pollutants deposited in this single event may have comprised a significant fraction (>10%) of total annual input {Sigma}PAH and {Sigma}DDT, as determined from lake sedimentation records.

• OSTI ID: 5194298
• Journal Information: Environmental Science and Technology; (United States), Journal Name: Environmental Science and Technology; (United States) Vol. 25:2; ISSN ESTHA; ISSN 0013-936X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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ALKENES
ARCTIC REGIONS
AROMATICS
ATMOSPHERIC PRECIPITATIONS
CAMPHENE
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
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CYCLOALKENES
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HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
HYDROCARBONS
INFORMATION
INSECTICIDES
MASS TRANSFER
NUMERICAL DATA
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
PESTICIDES
POLAR REGIONS
POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
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SNOW
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