Changes in heavy metals in Antarctic snow from Coats Land since the mid-19th to the late-20th century

Planchon, Frédéric A.M.; Boutron, Claude F.; Barbante, Carlo; Cozzi, Giulio; Gaspari, Vania; Wolff, Eric W.; Ferrari, Christophe P.; Cescon, Paolo. 2002 Changes in heavy metals in Antarctic snow from Coats Land since the mid-19th to the late-20th century. Earth and Planetry Science Letters, 200 (1-2). 207-222. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0012-821X(02)00612-X

Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)

Abstract/Summary

V, Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, Co, Ag, Cd, Ba, Pb, Bi and U have been measured in a series of dated snow samples, covering the period from 1834 to 1990, collected at remote, low accumulation sites in Coats Land, Antarctica. They were determined by ultrasensitive inductively coupled sector field mass spectrometry in ultraclean conditions. Concentrations are found to be extremely low, down to 3 x 10(-15) g/g, for most metals, then confirming the high purity of Antarctic snow. The results show contrasting time trends for the different metals. For Mn, Co, Ba, and possibly V and Cd, no clear time trends are observed. For Cr, Cu, Zn, Ag, Pb, Bi and U, on the other hand, pronounced enhancements are observed during the recent decades. They are attributed to emissions of heavy metals to the atmosphere from human activities in Southern America, Southern Africa and Australia, especially non-ferrous metal mining and smelting in Chile, Peru, Zaire, Zambia and Australia. It shows that atmospheric pollution for heavy metals in the remote Antarctic continent is not limited to Pb and Cu, as previously thought, but also affects several other metals. It is a further indication that atmospheric pollution for heavy metals is really global.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1016/S0012-821X(02)00612-X
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > Antarctic Science in the Global Context (2000-2005) > Signals in Antarctica of Past Global Changes
ISSN:	0012-821X
Additional Keywords:	heavy metals, snow, Antarctica, time series analysis, pollution, aerosols, inductively coupled plasma methods
NORA Subject Terms:	Meteorology and Climatology Glaciology Chemistry
Date made live:	14 Mar 2012 10:29 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/14164

Actions (login required)

View Item

Document Downloads

More statistics for this item...