Airborne trace metals and organochlorine compounds in arctic Alaska and Siberia: How important?
- Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, OR (United States). Environmental Research Lab.
- Utah State Univ., Logan, UT (United States). Dept. of Civil Engineering
- Oregon State Univ., Corvallis, OR (United States). Dept. of Fisheries and Wildlife
Metal contaminants of anthropogenic origin identified in the arctic atmosphere and the presence of organochlorines in arctic marine mammal tissues has raised the question of the importance of long-range transport of contaminants to the Arctic. Research focused on arctic regions in Alaska and the Taimyr peninsula of north central Russia. Inland watersheds were examined for evidence of increases in trace metal flux during the past 150 years and the presence of organochlorine compounds. Fish and ground squirrels were examined for body burdens of organic contaminants and plasma biomarkers were examined to evaluate biological effects. Sediment data from several lakes suggest that over broad regions, trace metal fluxes have increased only slightly (< 10%), if at all, since the pre-industrial era. The highest metal concentrations in lake sediments are associated with known elevated geologic sources of metals within the respective watersheds. Organochlorines are present in remote inland arctic ecosystems and are most concentrated in the tissues (e.g. liver) of organisms representing higher trophic levels. Arctic Siberia and Alaska (Taimyr peninsula) are similar with regard to contaminant concentrations. However, lichen and moss data suggest that Pb from Eurasian sources does not reach arctic Alaska. The results indicate that long range, transpolar transport and deposition of trace metals is not a large scale current phenomena in the two study regions. The transport and deposition of organochlorine compounds, however, is occurring but at relatively low levels.
- OSTI ID:
- 197552
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9511137-; ISBN 1-880611-03-1; TRN: IM9612%%326
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 2. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) world conference, Vancouver (Canada), 5-9 Nov 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Second SETAC world congress (16. annual meeting): Abstract book. Global environmental protection: Science, politics, and common sense; PB: 378 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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