Abstract

Amounts of PCBs accumulated in sediments of Lake Michigan and four Wisconsin lakes, isolated from point sources, were measured. The flux of PCBs to Lake Michigan sediments was 4 times greater than the average loading of 1.9 +/- 1.1..mu..g/m/sup 2/ per year to the remote lakes and has been occurring longer. Comparisons of the remote lakes and Lake Michigan were used to estimate the net atmospheric and nonatmospheric contributions of PCBs to Lake Michigan. The net atmospheric input and the total atmospheric flux, reported previously, were used to calculate the net vapor-phase transfer. Total atmospheric (430 +/- 130 kg/year) and net nonatmospheric (330 +/- 140 kg/year) contributions to Lake Michigan were of similar magnitude. Volatilization losses (320 +/- 140 kg/year) were similar to sedimentation losses (440 +/- 130), indicating that volatilization may be a major removal mechanism of PCBs from lakes.

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