Heavy metals in the bottom sediments of the Gren Fjord (West Spitsbergen)

Usyagina I.S.¹, Namyatov A.A.¹, Meshcheriakov N.I.¹, Boyko V.V.²

HEAVY METALS IN THE BOTTOM SEDIMENTS OF THE GREN FJORD (WEST SPITSBERGEN)

Relief and Quaternary deposits of the Arctic, Subarctic and North-West Russia. Issue 10.

doi: 10.24412/2687-1092-2023-10-276-282

¹Murmansk Marine Biological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Murmansk, Russia

²Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia

Abstract. Concentrations of As, Cd, Co, Cu, V, Ni, Pb, Mn, Fe, Zn and Hg in the cores of bottom sediments of the Gulf of Gren Fjord (West Sspitsbergen) were studied. The temporal dynamics of anthropogenic load on the ecosystem was estimated using ²¹⁰Pb sedimentary layer dating. The calculated enrichment coefficients of Cd, Co, Cu, V, Ni, Pb, Mn, Fe and Zn, normalized by Fe concentration in accordance with the environmental pollution scale, revealed a low level of anthropogenic pollution. Moderate and high levels are typical for As and Hg. The lack of direct compatibility of the time profiles of metals with changes in their concentrations in the atmosphere may indicate a more important influence of other direct sources, such as river and glacial runoff and sea currents.

Keywords: Gren Fjord, dating, ²¹⁰Pb, heavy metals, anthropogenic flows

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Cite this article:

Usyagina I.S., Namyatov A.A., Meshcheriakov N.I., Boyko V.V. Heavy metals in the bottom sediments of the Gren Fjord (West Spitsbergen) // Relief and Quaternary deposits of the Arctic, Subarctic and North-West Russia. 2023. Issue 10. P. 276-282. doi: 10.24412/2687-1092-2023-10-276-282