Reconstruction of atmospheric lead and heavy metal pollution in the Otrębowskie Brzegi peatland (S Poland)

Authors

  • Fatima Pawełczyk Silesian University of Technology http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6193-5964
  • Karolina Bloom University of Szczecin
  • Witold Jucha Pedagogical University of Cracow
  • Adam Michczyński Silesian University of Technology
  • Daniel Okupny Pedagogical University of Cracow
  • Jarosław Sikorski Silesian University of Technology
  • Julita Tomkowiak University of Szczecin
  • Ewelina Zając University of Agriculture in Krakow
  • Nathalie Fagel University of Liège

Keywords:

Pb isotopes, pollution, elemental record, human activity, 14C and 210Pb dating, palynological analysis

Abstract

We reconstruct palaeoenvironmental changes since the Late Holocene in the Orava–Nowy Targ Basin, with an emphasis on anthropogenic influence (Walker et al., 2018). This reconstruction employs multiproxy analyses of the Otrębowskie Brzegi poor fen. We combined radiocarbon and 210Pb dating with elemental geochemistry, stable lead isotopes, and palaeobotanical analyses. The core we investigated covers a period from 4200 ± 100 BC to the present, with a peat accumulation rate varying between 0.001 and 0.243 cm y–1. Heavy metal concentrations, Pb isotopic ratios, and a palynological analysis revealed a significant impact of human activities in the past. The highest concentration and accumulation rate of Pb, were found around 1950 AD. The 206Pb/207Pb quotient ranged between 1.168 and 1.223, with average value around 1.198. Most of the interpretation was based on Pb and its stable isotopes; however, other elements were also important indicators of natural and anthropogenic environmental changes. Our results revealed similarities between the geochemical composition of the peatland studied and other peatlands from the Orava–Nowy Targ Basin.

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Published

2019-11-05

Issue

Vol. 63 No. 3 (2019)

Section

Articles

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