The Impact of Early Mining and Smelting on the Local Tropospheric Aerosol Detected in Ombrotrophic Peat Bogs in the Harz, Germany

Abstract

Chemical analyses of dated ombrotrophicpeat cores from the Sonnenberger Moor, Harz, Germany,were done to determine the effect of early mining andsmelting on the tropospheric aerosol. Elementalconcentrations in peat were determined using XRF. Pb,Cu and Zn enrichment factors (EFs), and Pb and Cu fluxes were calculated. The results show that theconcentration of Pb and Cu as well as the calculatedPb and Cu EFs closely follow changes in the activitiesof man, especially those of the history of mining andsmelting. In contrast to Zn which seems to besubjected to post-depositional migration, Cu appearsto be immobile. Elevated Pb and Cu emissions, due tomining activities, can be followed back topre-Medieval times. These findings were supported byother studies in the vicinity or in the SonnenbergerMoor itself, all revealing the strong impact ofprimitive mining and smelting on the local aerosol.Thus peat cores from ombrotrophic bogs are very usefulfor quantifying temporal changes in metal emissions.