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Heavy metal analysis of lake sediments as an indicator of enviromental contamination: and example from Round Loch of Glenhead, South West Scotland

Fletcher, C; Heavy metal analysis of lake sediments as an indicator of enviromental contamination: and example from Round Loch of Glenhead, South West Scotland. (ECRC Research Report ). UCL Environmental Change Research Centre Green open access

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Abstract

The technique of heavy metal analysis was used to determine the zinc, lead and copper concentrations in a single core (RLGH3) from Round Loch of Glenhead, Galloway. The sediment was digested using an HF/ HN0_{3} / Rcio_{4} digestion and concentrations of the heavy metals obtained from Atomic Absorpti1 Spectrophotometry. RLGH3 was dated by core correlation using a {210}^Pb-dated core taken from the same site in Round Loch in 1981 (Flower and Battarbee, 1983a). The sediment accumulation rate was calculated to be 1.18 mm per annum. Quality control analysis showed the technique of heavy metal analysis to be accurate and repeatable. The sources, transport, deposition and incorporation of Zn, Cu and Pb into lake sediments were discussed in Literature Review. Heavy metal analysis was used to determine the onset of environmental cha~ within the loch, to compare the timings of increases of the three metals and to study the differences in the magnitude of trace metal contamination. Variability of trace metal concentrations lower down in the core was attributed to catchment changes as these variations occurred prior to man's increasing impact on metal production. Lead showed the earliest increase of the three metals at c.1670, and increased to six times its background value. The early increase may correspond to pre-industrial mining or production of Pb in the region. Zn began to exceed the background concentration at about 22 cm (c.1844 and increased by an order of magnitude of 2.7 over the background. Cu showed a small increase at c.1860 with an increase over background values of 1.13 times. It was established that little sediment mixing occurred within Round Loch. Due to the acidic bedrock of the catchment, Round Loch is poorly buffered against acidic precipitation, and it can be stated that Round Loch is contaminated both by heavy metals falling directly onto the lake from atmospheric into the lake by acidic precipitation. Studies from Scandinavia and North America mentioned in the discussion verify this process.

Type: Report
Title: Heavy metal analysis of lake sediments as an indicator of enviromental contamination: and example from Round Loch of Glenhead, South West Scotland
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
Publisher version: https://www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/research/research-centr...
Language: English
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of Geography
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10116841
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