Concentrations of trace elements in recent and preindustrial sediments from Norwegian and Russian Arctic lakes

Spatial Trends of Trace-Element Contamination in Recently Deposited Lake Sediment Around the Ni–Cu Smelter at Nikel, Kola Peninsula, Russian Arctic

“…It is well worth noting that As and Hg are not associated with the organic fraction of surface sediments in our study, which is contrary to many lakes in Norway (Fjeld et al 1994;Rognerud and Fjeld 2001) and the Arctic (Rognerud et al 1998), where the sources are dominated by longrange transported depositions. Thus, this may indicate that the fallout of Hg and As are mainly associated to small inorganic particles originating at the smelter and its roasting and dressing plants, windblown dust from tailings, transportation, and handling of ore as mentioned by Gregurek et al (1999).…”

“…However, the smelter complex at Nickel and Zapolyarnij is not the sole anthropogenic source for trace-element depositions in the study area. More remote emissions can also have an impact on trace-element concentrations in lake sediments in our study area (Dauvalter 1994;Rognerud and Fjeld 2001), and it is known that long-range transported Hg and Pb have caused elevated concentrations in lake sediments from the Norwegian Arctic (Cf for Hg and Pb were generally 2-4 and 3-5, respectively, Rognerud et al 1998). Local atmospheric emissions from burning of fossil fuels and other anthropogenic activities in the Kirkenes-Pasvik region, as well as in the Murmansk region may also contribute to this.…”

A 150-year Record of Heavy Metals in the Varved Sediments of Lake Bolterskardet, Svalbard

“…Growing concerns about heavy metal and organic pollution in the fragile Arctic ecosystems have led to numerous projects being carried out to study spatial and temporal trends of contaminants, and monitor the impact of human activities in the Arctic (e.g., Lockhart et al, 1995;Boutron et al, 1995;Ä yrä et al, 1997;Braune et al, 1999;Macdonald et al, 2000;Shotyk et al, 2003;AMAP, 2004;Riget et al, 2004;Haack et al, 2004;Berg et al, 2004). On Svalbard, heavy metals have been studied from shelf sediments (Rognerud et al, 1998;Siegel et al, 2000), lacustrine sediments (Holte et al, 1996;Boyle et al, 2004;Rose et al, 2004), and animals (e.g., Fant et al, 2001;Derocher et al, 2003;Willerroider, 2003). It has been determined that heavy metal concentration in the surface sediments of Svalbard fjords is much higher than assumed background, presumably as a result of terrestrial water drainage of coal particles originating from local coal stores and industrial activities (Holte et al, 1996).…”

A Comparison of Modern and Preindustrial Levels of Mercury in the Teeth of Beluga in the Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories, and Walrus at Igloolik, Nunavut, Canada

“…Second, some of these foods, including various marine mammals, contain concentrations of Hg that exceed Health and Welfare Canada guidelines based on average adult intake (Wagemann et al, 1996). Third, reconstructions from dated lake sediment cores indicate that, unlike the recent decreasing trend of atmospheric Hg deposition at southern latitudes (Engstrom and Swain, 1997), deposition rates in some (but not all) Arctic regions appear to be increasing (Hermanson, 1993(Hermanson, , 1998Lockhart et al, 1995Lockhart et al, , 1998Rognerud et al, 1998). Hepatic Hg levels in Canadian belugas, narwhals, and ringed seals also displayed a significant increasing trend during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s (Wagemann et al, 1996.…”