A Review of Heavy Metals Contamination Within the Laurentian Great Lakes
Heavy metals are ubiquitous in the Great Lakes basin at a wide range of concentrations. Their historical sources are associated with geological settings of the area, while contemporary ones are attributed to anthropogenic activities of the watershed’s inh
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Contents 1 Historical and Contemporary Sources 2 Contamination Status 2.1 Lake Superior 2.2 Lake Michigan 2.3 Lake Huron 2.4 Huron-Erie Corridor 2.5 Lake Erie 2.6 Lake Ontario 3 Fate and Environmental Impact 4 Monitoring and Remediation Actions 5 Temporal Changes and Future Prospects References
Abstract Heavy metals are ubiquitous in the Great Lakes basin at a wide range of concentrations. Their historical sources are associated with geological settings of the area, while contemporary ones are attributed to anthropogenic activities of the watershed’s inhabitants. Four heavy metals in particular can be credited with the development of this area: copper, iron, lead, and mercury. Copper has been mined and processed in the Lake Superior basin for almost 10,000 years, while the iron industry history impacts are relatively new, dating back to the nineteenth century. It was iron however, which first prompted widespread development of the region, due to its high demand and extensive use. Also, lead and mercury can be credited as elements marking critical moments in local economic progress: lead, as an exponent of the auto-moto industry, and mercury as a side pollutant of coal burning and as a determinant of the chlor-alkali industry. The following description of the Great Lakes status in relation to metals has been drawn based mostly on sediment contamination, since this compartment of the environment is considered E. Szalinska (*) AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection, Cracow, Poland e-mail: [email protected] Jill Crossman and Chris Weisener (eds.), Contaminants of the Great Lakes, Hdb Env Chem, DOI 10.1007/698_2020_490, © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. Szalinska
an “archive” for most of the aquatic pollutants. A review of metal loadings in the Great Lakes shows a fascinating history of the civilizational progress and efforts and also scientific accomplishments in metal research. Temporal patterns of metal concentrations showed the highest values around the 1950s, followed by a generally decreasing trend attributed to notable achievements in emission reduction and remediation efforts. Although such a trend is a most desirable attainment and conclusion, still much remains to be considered in this field, especially in light of potential future climatic changes. Keywords Contamination level, Cycling, Monitoring, Sources, Spatial-temporal changes
1 Historical and Contemporary Sources The Great Lakes basin has a long and complex geologic history which affects metal legacy and distribution of contemporary contaminated areas. Briefly, the bedrock geology of this basin consists of two substantially different rock formations overlain by unconsolidated glacial deposits. Bedrock of the northern part is composed of Precambrian metamorphosed igneous and sedimentary rocks, while Phanerozoic sedimentary remnants of the ancient seas fill out the southern part of the basin (Fig. 1). Within the Precambrian rocks, there is a notable occurrence of minerals, including
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