A new 155-year record of Pb pollution from Devon ice cap, Canada

Abstract

A ∼64-m long firn core from Devon Island (Canada) was used to investigate temporal trends of atmospheric lead pollution in the Canadian High Arctic. Lead concentration ([Pb]) in firn increased from 10 pg g -1 before the industrial revolution (1845-1880) to peak above 300 pg g -1 ca 1970. As in central Greenland cores, the Devon Island [Pb] profile generally follows 20 th century trends of leaded fuel consumption in the USA and Europe until 1970. However the post-1970 decline of [Pb] in the Devon core lags behind that measured in Greenland, which suggests that the Canadian High Artic presently receives atmospheric Pb from source(s) that contribute comparatively less to Pb deposition over Greenland. This additional Pb pollution probably reaches northern Canada via transpolar transport from Europe and/or Asia.