Dendrochronology and Heavy Metal Deposition in Tree Rings of Baldcypress

Latimer, Shane; Devall, Margaret S.; Thomas, Charles C.; Ellgaard, Erik G.; Kumar, Satish D.; Thien, Leonard B.

doi:10.2134/jeq1996.00472425002500060035x

Cited by 25 publications

(27 citation statements)

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“…A 4.9‐km transect with stations at 30.4‐m intervals had previously been established along Bayou Trepagnier, with Station 0 closest to the refinery (Latimer et al, 1996). We cored baldcypress trees growing in the swamp away from the spoil bank, along a 610‐m transect (Transect 1, nine trees) and a 183‐m transect (Transect 2, six trees) perpendicular to Bayou Trepagnier.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is a long‐lived conifer and the wood has a slow transition to heartwood (Thomas et al, 1996). Latimer et al (1996) analyzed growth rings of baldcypress trees on the spoil bank of Bayou Trepagnier (not in the swamp per se) to provide a chronology of Pb pollution. Concentrations of Pb in the wood of baldcypress showed that Pb levels increased in the early 1920s after the plant opened and during dredging episodes in the 1950s, then slowly declined in recent decades.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Lead Transport into Bayou Trepagnier Wetlands in Louisiana, USA

Devall¹,

Thien

Ellgaard

et al. 2006

J of Env Quality

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Establishment of a petroleum refinery in 1916 near the headwaters of Bayou Trepagnier with subsequent dredging of the bayou resulted in spoil banks containing high levels of Pb. A large swamp abuts the eastern bank of the bayou. Cores were taken from 15 baldcypress [Taxodium distichum (L.) Richard] trees growing in the swamp along a 610-m transect (nine trees) and a 183-m transect (six trees) running perpendicular from the spoil bank. The cores were crossdated, annual rings were measured, and 5-yr segments of the cores were prepared and analyzed for heavy metals. Soil samples were collected along one transect and analyzed for metals. Levels of Pb in Bayou Trepagnier swamp trees were compared to levels in nine baldcypress trees growing along Stinking Bayou, a reference area. During the last 100 yr, Pb in growth rings of swamp baldcypress trees averaged 8.6 mg/kg (SD 4.88) along one transect and 7.9 mg/kg (SD 5.39) along the other. Lead in the soil along the first transect dropped from .2700 mg/kg (spoil bank) to 10 mg/kg at 420 m into the swamp. Baldcypress trees growing near the refinery on the spoil bank along Bayou Trepagnier (covered in an earlier study) averaged 4.5 mg/kg Pb, and trees along Stinking Bayou averaged 2.1 mg/kg. Trees in the swamp soil with 10 to 425 mg/ kg Pb concentrated much more Pb than trees growing on the heavily polluted bank. Greater uptake of Pb by trees in the swamp is discussed in terms of soil dynamics and Pb sources.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Lead Transport into Bayou Trepagnier Wetlands in Louisiana, USA

Devall¹,

Thien

Ellgaard

et al. 2006

J of Env Quality

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“…Vroblesky and Yanosky (1990) confirmed the presence and timing of contaminants in tree-rings they studied using historical refuse records at a landfill site in Maryland. The US National Climatic Center http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/hurricane/references.html lists 19 dendrochronology-based publications in its paleotempestology page, 3 of which are based on dendrochemistry, including isotopes (Latimer et al, 1996;Oberbauer et al, 1997;Reams and Van Deusen, 1996) that support the age-dating of past well documented tornado events. Rao et al (2002) observed radioactive contaminants in Japanese tree rings and correlated these elevated concentrations to the 1945 atomic-bomb explosions.…”

Section: Have Dendrochronology and Forensic Dendrochemistry Been Thormentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Dendrochronology and Dendrochemistry in Environmental Forensics: Does It Meet theDaubertCriteria?

Balouet¹,

Smith

Vroblesky

et al. 2009

Environmental Forensics

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“…Another feature especially useful for long-term studies is that baldcypress timber has been used for a long time, and sub-fossil logs are often found in very good condition because of the timber's inherent decay resistance (Stahle et al 1985b). Because of these properties, baldcypress has been used for a number of treering studies to examine drought severity going back hundreds of years (Stahle et al 1985a;Stahle et al 1988Stahle et al , 1998, hurricane signals (Reams and Van Deusen 1998), heavy metals in the environment (Latimer et al 1996), wastewater amendment , and even day length (Stahle et al 1991).…”

Section: Tree-ring Studies With Baldcypressmentioning

confidence: 99%